Ignoring The Truth
by When Dreams Become Reality
Summary: Robin's life in this Hell has never been so bad until one day... he can no longer ignore the truth that all hope for him is lost. Battling his own beliefs and the ones Slade has been pressing so heavily onto him, just how long can Robin stay sane? Apprentice Fic NOT SLASH, I REPEAT NOT SLASH!
1. Shredded Hope

The Apprenticeship lasted much longer than Robin had anticipated.

And the worst part was, the Titans still had no awareness of the small and deadly probes that infected their bloodstreams.

Robin had tried countless times in the previous months to escape. But, to no avail he was still considered a Renegade.

And so that's why, when Slade had forced him to pick a new more intimidating name for himself, he chose Renegade. Robin had desperately hoped that the Titans would see it as a sign that he was being blackmailed with their lives, but they just saw it as another piece of evidence proving his treachery.

Whenever he fought them, he always hoped that one of them would whisper 'We know about the probes. Until we find a cure, play along'. But no, each time he arrived back at the Haunt Slade showed him video of the fight taken from security cameras, as if to say 'See they think your evil, and look how much you've improved here. You could never kick that high as a Titan...'

Robin lived day-by-day. Every morning he got up, got dressed in the uncomfortable uniform he was forced to wear, did whatever Slade had planned for the day, and if he was lucky, went back to bed, where he could safely retreat to his dreams.

For the first weeks of his time here his dreams were mostly of the Titans, Batman or sometimes even the Justice League coming to his rescue. But as time went on the dream of being rescued from this Hell was grated away, until it was just tiny shreds of hope that slipped through his fingers.

His hope was not fully lost, but it was slowly being run against that grater, like a block of cheese, the pieces slowly falling to the floor as Slade continued to pull it back and forth against the grater as he watched helplessly.

Yes, his hope was fading away, because one-by-one... The Titans were giving up on him.

Raven was the first to lose hope, being the most logical of the group. She soon realized that she needed to keep her emotions balanced and in check, and frankly, hope was not an emotion she could afford to have.

Cyborg and Beast Boy followed soon behind, when they discovered that even if it was all some sort of trick, Robin was too far down the path to ever become a Titan again. No, if he ever got out of this 'deal' he would lead a normal life as Dick Grayson.

That only left Starfire. Robin could tell she still held back when she fought him. Often times he caught her running instead of flying, or aiming her starbolts just a little off so that Robin wouldn't suffer anything worse than a second degree burn.

Getting the Titans to lose hope in his Apprentice was like trying to unlock a very complex door for Slade. The door had four locks. And he had to unlock them all to open the door.

And what was behind the door? For Slade, it was the sweet taste of victory and the  
Perfect Apprentice waiting to be trained.

For Robin, however it was a sad and lonely life to live.

So Robin prayed every night before bed, that Starfire would never lose her hope in him. That there would always be someone who believed he wasn't truly evil…

but the day that Starfire lost hope was approaching much more rapidly than anyone had imagined.

It was cold and rainy, and as Robin ran through the woods near a science lab he had just robbed mud slapped up his legs, as if it was trying to pull him down and drown him in the thick brown substance.

And to be honest, Robin would have rather been swallowed up by the mud than face what was chasing him.

But, to his misfortune, as he got to a wide clearing surrounded by pine trees, they were already there waiting for him.

The four Titans stood (or floated) soaked and cold in front of him, the anger and bitterness clear on everyone's faces…

even Starfires.

Robin quickly attacked, starting with Beast Boy first, as he was the easiest to take out. He charged the small green boy with a yell, and threw a punch at his jaw, effectively hitting his target. Beast Boy fell to the ground in a splash of mud and water, blood pouring out of his mouth and now broken jaw and possibly nose.

Robin then went for Cyborg, who already had his sonic cannon pointed directly at his former leader and friend. Robin pulled something similar to a bird-a-rang from his belt and threw it viciously into the center of the sonic cannon, effectively shorting it out. He and Cyborg then engaged in a series of punches, until Robin's torso was encased in a  
Layer of black.

He turned to see an angry Raven floating above him and farther in the distance, a sad Starfire helping Beast Boy to his feet.

Robin ran and jumped towards Raven, knocking her out of the air and grabbing her hood at the same time. He threw her into Cyborg's huge metallic chest and the blow sent them both rolling down a hill.

Starfire was carefully watching from a distance the entire time, but as Beast Boy went to go help Cyborg and Raven who probably still hadn't stopped rolling, she was left alone with the cruel looking boy she once called friend.

"I do not know why you have become what you are Robin, but I do know that it is wrong, and you are a criminal now." She began speaking calmly, "And I know that criminals must be stopped." As soon as the sentence was finished she spun quickly into the air, green bolts of energy lighting up her hands.

She began rapidly throwing them at Robin, who was now running thought the trees in an attempt to guard himself from the oncoming flow of deadly beautiful energy.

What happened next seemed to take place in slow motion. As the starbolt left her hand Starfire knew she would give him much worse than a burn this time. And she did. The starbolt moved much faster than Robin could ever dodge, and effectively ripped his pale skin open in a violent crash of flesh and blood as Robin fell to his knees.

A cry of panic and hurt escaped his lips and echoed loudly through the forest, alerting anything and everything nearby that he was severely injured.

"Apprentice, return to base. Now." He heard Slade's angry voice command through the small earpiece.

Starfire had run off somewhere, and he was now alone in the rain. Robin winced as he stood up and began his way back to the Haunt.

When he returned back at the Haunt, Wintergreen and Slade were waiting for him with a stretcher. Robin knew he would never make it to the rolling bed and collapsed on the floor with another cry of pain.

Wintergreen quickly hoisted him onto the stretcher and gave Robin's belt to Slade, who would keep it until Robin needed it for training or a mission.

But all three knew quite well that Robin would not be doing either of those things for a long while.

"Oh my... Let's get you all fixed up shall we?" Wintergreen tried his best to sound the least bit worried, but inside he was terrified for the boy. He could easily see that Robin had lost a lot of blood and that the starbolt had taken away a large chunk of skin on his left hip. As for the rest of his body, it was covered in many deep gashes filled with mud, and there was a large purple bruise forming on his right cheek from a blow he had taken by the metal hands of Cyborg.

Robin could feel his skin slicing through the hot air as Wintergreen quickly pulled him into the infirmary where two robots were waiting to help.

As Slade watched his very beat up and bruised Apprentice being pulled away, he smiled wide under his two-tone mask.

The girl had _meant_ to cause such damage. Which meant…

he had finally opened the last lock on the door.

Robin tried not to scream in pain as Wintergreen poked and prodded his side.

"Now, can you feel this, or is it just numb? Is your head getting dizzy? What blood type are you?" Wintergreen asked the questions he already had answers to as he put an IV to Robin's arm and dropped a heavy sedative into the clear liquid.

"You're going to go to sleep now okay? I promise, when you wake up you will feel much better..." Robin could just barely make out Wintergreen's frantic voice as he drifted off to sleep.

But Wintergreen had lied, because when Robin woke up he felt much worse.

The pain in his side was almost completely gone, which was the problem. If he could not feel the physical pain he was in, then Robin's mind was forced to focus on the mental pain.

Starfire had delivered a death blow to him, and not by accident.

She had lost hope in him. This meant...

Slade had won.

So, hope you guys liked the first chapter and if not then… I'm sorry? Haha I know some of you guys are probably mad at me for posting this story instead of updating White Walls but I just had to okay? I mean, when an idea pops into my head it starts forming into some really awesome sentences and then I gotta write them down fast before I forget them, and then more and more just keep coming! Okay so, before I say bye there are just a couple things I wanna go over.

THIS IS NOT A SLASH! Okay? Got it? And I'm not trying to trick you by saying that. THERE REALLY IS NO SLASH IN THIS STORY.

The ending hasn't exactly been planned yet, but I can tell you there will probably be a sequel and that the ending to this story will not be all lovey dovey.

This story is about ROBIN. Not Starfire, not Raven, not Beast Boy, and not Cyborg. So it will be told in his point of view most of the time. Don't like? Sucks for you.

I'm not actually as mean as I sound, but I'm kinda in a hurry to post this sooooo…. BYE!


	2. Deadly Bullets

**Aghhhh… Sorry if you got an e-mail sayin there was a new chapter when there CLEARLY was not. Stupid me, gotta forget to write authors notes and gotta take down chapters and junk *incoherent mumbling*. **

**Annnyyywayyyysss, I think (And hope) some of you will be happy when I say that I am ATTEMPTING to draw some art for this fic… KEY WORD ATTEMPTING. Yeah… so I'm not Picaso or anything, but I'd like to say I'm 'on level'. If that art doesn't come for a billion more years don't act like I didn't warn you. BECAUSE I AM WARNING YOU NOW THAT I MIGHT NOT EVEN FINISH IT. Sooo… review replies? Yeah let's do that… **

**Dream2Paper11: No kidding! What is with all the slashy stuff on this site? There should be a section specifically for slash… I especially hate when the author never MENTIONS its slash, so you just go on reading until suddenly two dudes are making out. AND HALF THE TIME YOU READ THAT STUFF SLADE HAS A MASK ON AND I'M LIKE, Uhhhhhhhh okayyyyyyy…. **

**Oh and, P.S. WHY ARE YOU NOT UPDATING TWISTED HEARTS!? Come on woman! I NEEEED that story to survive! It's my inspiration…. **

**Fighter1357: OMG! YOU SOUND AS HYPER AS I DOOO! I UPDATED SUPER DUPER FAST JUST FOR YOU! (And a couple other people) AREN'T YOU PROUD!?**

**Sadie Aurora Night: Haha thanks, I have nooooo clue what that type of writing is called. But it sounds sophisticated and people like it, so I try to use it when I can. **

**P.S. UPDATE YOUR STORY WOMAN! It's reeeaaaaallllllyyyy good. **

**The strong silver flower: Awww I know! Poor Robin always has to be the one getting abused and stuff… your heart is REALLY goanna break in this chapter… **

**OMG PEOPLE I GOT FOUR REVIEWS IN ONE CHAPTER! That's more than I've ever had in and ENTIRE STORY! Oh and P.S. I had an account where I wrote Percy Jackson stories before this account, so I'm referring to those and White Walls when I say 'other stories'. I deleted them though. Cuz they sucked. BADLY. TERRIBLY, TERRIBLY, BADLY. Trust me. **

**Sooooo… after reading this ridiculously long author's note you probably think I'm on speed. BUT I'M NOT OKAY!? I CHECKED ALREADY! Annndddd you're probably wanting me to shut up so you can read… so I will… **

Robin had spent the next few days mostly sleeping. He had been taken back to his room after Wintergreen managed to bandage his wounds. He was much to weak to walk around or do anything, so Robin mostly sat or lay on his bed and sorted through his thoughts.

It killed Robin inside to know that the reason for his pain was Starfire. She had shot starbolts at him before, and hit him too, but this time... It was different.

He still couldn't get the cold glare coming from her big green eyes out of his head. When she fired at him, the bolts were much faster and more deadly than before, and she had only missed by a few inches.

But one of the bolts hadn't missed at all.

Robin knew that the day had come, and that Starfire had lost hope in him... Which meant... If Robin ever did escape, he would have nothing from his old life to go back to.

He rolled onto his side to look at the clock on the nightstand. It read 11:53, which meant Wintergreen would be bringing him lunch soon. As if in cue, the heavy metal door swished open with little noise, but not to reveal an old frail man bringing him food, but Slade. At the sight of seeing the mercenary Robin's muscles instantly tensed, as he thought about how defenseless he was against the man in his current condition.

Slade set the tray of food down on Robin's lap and walked away, as if to leave. But in one swift motion he pulled the chair from under a nearby desk and positioned it by the bed.

"She really did a lot of damage on you didn't she?" Slade asked as he sat down in the chair. Robin only nodded, due to the fact that his mouth was stuffed with food.

"Well, I suppose it doesn't matter, since it was planned that you'd be doing a lot of training the next few weeks anyways. As for training... It starts at three. I suggest you get up, take a shower and stretch. Sitting in bed these past few days has done nothing to help your muscles."

The mask covering Robin's eyes did well to hide the shock and annoyance in them. Did Slade really expect him to train? He hadn't even tried to walk yet...

As Robin looked up to respond, the only thing staring back at him was an empty room. He sighed heavily and swung his feet over the side of his bed. His toes curled as a reaction to his bare feet on the cold floor. Where were his shoes? Wintergreen had probably taken them off before putting him in bed, and must've forgotten Robin was now allowed to keep them.

During the first months of his apprenticeship Robin wasn't allowed to have his shoes or belt unless training or going on a mission. He had finally earned the right to wear shoes, but was still not aloud to wear the utility belt. Not that it matter to Robin, because he knew Slade would never let him carry around those kinds of weapons.

Robin stood and walked towards the dresser at the far end of his room, limping slightly with each step. He pulled open the drawer to reveal several nicely folded uniforms. Pulling one out, Robin began making his way to the bathroom door for his shower.

After he'd showered and gotten dressed Robin tried his very best to stretch his limbs. He could feel how tight they had been, and as he stretched he couldn't help but agree with Slade. He really did need to stretch his muscles a little...

Robin walked through many dimly lit corridors as he made his way to the training room. Robin was allowed to walk around alone as soon as Slade had decided he could be trusted enough not to leave, and that he knew his way around well enough.

The training room smelled of sweat and blood. There was various types of equipment and weapons scattered around the room. And standing in the middle of it was Slade, looking as cruel as ever.

"Right on time, Robin. Shall we begin?" Robin nodded his head in reply, and although Slade wouldn't normally accept it as an answer, he let this one slide.

"So... Since you're still a little... Beaten up from your last encounter with the Titans, we will be doing some work with weapons today." Slade walked over to a metal cabinet on the far side of the room and began rummaging around inside. When he found what he had been looking for, he pulled out the black piece of metal and held it up for Robin to see.

"Specifically guns." Robin instinctively took a small, barely noticeable, step towards the door.

He couldn't. He wouldn't. He had promised Bruce to never ever use a gun, despite the circumstance. People killed, and they used guns to do it.

"Follow me" Slade spoke as he walked past the troubled boy and out the door. He opened a door a little farther down the hall and stepped inside. As Robin first stepped in, he couldn't see anything in the dark room. But as Slade flicked on the lights, he could clearly see what this room was used for.

It was a shooting range. The single station was set up to his left, and to Robin's right was a wooden table and chairs. Sitting on the table were five other different and deadly looking guns.

Slade sat down in one of of the chairs and placed the gun he was holding with the rest of the others. He motioned with his hand for Robin to take a seat, and he shuffled his way to the chair.

"Now, I want you to take apart each gun. Once they're all disassembled put them back together. You will do this until you can complete it in under ten minutes."

Robin nodded grudgingly, taking apart guns? He could do that. Besides... It could be useful as a hero to know this...

It took him close to an hour the first time he tried, but by his third time Robin could have been able to disassemble and reassemble those guns with his eyes closed.

It sickened him. It truly, sickened him that he had given in so easily. It sickened him that he had actually... enjoyed himself... even if it was just for a short moment.

But what came next he did not enjoy.

Slade picked up one of the guns - a pistol similar to what police used- and handed it to Robin.

"Shoot that target" He stated simply. Robin took the gun in his hands and made his way towards the range. As he held the gun like Slade had showed him, he couldn't help but notice how much heavier it felt with real bullets inside.

Slade could see the hesitation. The way his hands shook just barely as he held the gun up and aimed it in the center of the target. Just as his finger had grazed the trigger, Robin's arms dropped back to his sides.

"Slade... Master... I-I can't." He turned around to stare at Slade, searching his eye for the anger he knew was coming. Robin's mouth was slightly open and formed a small frown as he tried to steady his nervous breathing.

"Apprentice... I think- I know you are perfectly capable of shooting that gun and hitting the center of the target. So do it. Now." The authority in Slade's voice scarred Robin to no end, but it didn't scare him near as much as what damage could be caused with the object in his hands...

"No. I c-can't" His head took multiple short violent shakes back and forth, as if he were shaking the thought of doing it right out of his head.

"Apprentice, I gave you an order. It's not a choice you get to make." Slade was dangerously close to the edge now, and both of the two knew he would soon be going over it.

"No"

The one word had caused many bruises and scars for Robin before, and they were going to cause many more right now.

It only took Slade two, quick long strides to reach Robin and to grab him by his collar. He swiftly turned and slammed Robin's head and upper chest loudly onto the table, causing Robin to wince slightly.

"Robin... When a master gives his apprentice an order, what is he supposed to do?" Instead of answering, Robin tried to loosen Slade's firm grip on his head, only to have it pounded into the table again.

"Answer me when I am talking to you Apprentice..." Slade stated dangerously in his ear, causing Robin to let out a small whimper.

"The apprentice is supposed to... supposed to follow the order." Robin choked out between ragged breaths. It really was hard to breath with a table in your face...

"I gave you an order. So why didn't you follow it?" Anger was suddenly noticeable on Robin's face as he replied,

"Because I don't want to be your apprentice!" Robin half growled, half yelled.

He could practically hear the last string of Slade's mercy snap.

Robin found himself being dragged across the cold metal floor all the way back to the main room. Once there, Slade threw him hard against a wall and Robin landed on his back, face up.

"People do lots of things they don't want to, but they learn to like it. And so will you." The tip of Slade's heavy metal boot came crashing down on Robin's ribs and he could practically feel every crack it created. It then came crashing down on his right temple, causing Robin to release a blood curling scream.

"Master... Please..." Robin begged in frail voice. But Slade only smirked and crushed Robin's ringer and pinky finger with his boot.

"No Apprentice, I won't stop until I think you've learned your lesson..." Slade crouched down beside him, his fingers trailing extremely close to the edge of Robin's mask.

As he slowly peeled the piece of fabric off the Boy Wonder's face Robin closed his eyes.

"Open them." Slade tapped lightly on his eyelid, and the bright blue eys came out of hiding.

It wasn't the first time Slade had taken his mask off, but it certainly wasn't the last either. As Slade stared into those beautiful orbs he knew he had chosen the right person to be his apprentice.

"Stay here." Slade stood up from his spot and walked deeper into the room, into the shadows Robin couldn't see past.

When he was sure the madman was gone, Robin curled himself up into a tight ball, his back resting against the wall behind him. He hated not having his mask around Slade. Truthfully, he couldn't care less if Slade knew what color his eyes were, but it was the emotion that bothered him.

Without seeing his eyes Slade could never fully tell what emotions Robin was feeling, and it was that little since of protection that made Robin feel at least a little safe here.

When Slade returned he was holding a thin metal stick in his hand. At the end, glowing in red, was a jagged S with a circle around it.

Slade's symbol.

"Take off your shirt" Slade demanded as he knelt down next to the whimpering boy.

Robin obediently did so, and stared at the thing in Slade's hand.

He was going to brand him...

Make it known to the World that he belonged to Slade.

"P-please... Please Master... Don't... Master please..." Robin begged and whimpered as the glowing red S came closer and closer to his chest. Aimed right for his heart...

And then he felt it. The horrible, burning sensation coming from that very spot made his entire body feel as though it was engulfed in flames. A bloodcurdling scream ran throughout the entire Haunt, making the eerie sound of gears seem like happy children's music.

Slade only laughed as he watched Robin crumple on the floor, eyes staring up at his master.

Eyes filled with pain and apology.

Once Robin was done going through his fit of pain, Slade carried him back to his room, knowing that he would soon pass out from the searing whit hot burn on his chest. As Slade lay him down on the bed, Robin looked up at him with drooping eyes, only half open.

"My mask... Where's my mask...?" Slade chuckled and held the thing fabric up for Robin to see.

"Oh this? I don't think you'll be getting this back until you can shoot that gun."

And with that, Slade left him there to drown in pain.

**Oh and just so you people know… IT IS SUPERLY DUPER IMPORTANT TO READ MY INSANE AUTHORS NOTES… so do it… just do it… Whoa… did I just have a little Micheal Jackson moment there? I'm going crazzzzzyyyy…**


	3. Going Out

**Hello! Sooo I got another update for you guys. I would've updated sooner but I had a little writers block with this. There are a couple Ocs in this and it always takes me forever to think them up. I read stories ALLLLLL the time where the Ocs are perfect in everyway and have a really sad back-story, so I'm trying to make my Ocs a little less… typical. Annyyywayyyssss… Review Responses? **

**Aguna: That's a really… good idea! Ha! I complimented someone! Quick take a picture. If Robin ever does end up shooting the gun I will probably include that. **

**The strong silver flower: Yeah… it seems like in every Robin story his is suffering or being a total Dick. Haha, pun intended **

**Sadie Aurora Night: I'm in the same boat as you with the whole slash thing. I guess I just don't get why it's so awesome. I'm not really a romance writer so I hope nobody is expecting much romance. **

**Guest: Yeah, he is. And we writers don't even try to make him that way. He just naturally is! **

Why me?

This simple, two worded question had been thrashing around in his head for days. It was constantly beating at the logical part of his brain, creating a massive headache that was coming in giant tidal waves of pain.

Pain. That seemed to be a large part of his life right now. The never ending, burning, tear bringing pain that had become such a large part of him, he almost forgot about it completely. Pain was something Slade was good at inflicting, and inflict he did.

After that horrible day when he had refused to shoot the gun and had been branded as punishment Slade had been crueler. There were no more second chances left for Robin anymore. If he didn't obey the first time well… back to the cell it was for him.

Yes, the cell. He had been spending a lot of his time there lately; it was a horrible repeat of the first week living here. Life was like a broken record for Robin right now, and frankly, it was getting tiring.

He much preferred his nice, somewhat comfortable furnished room he normally spent his nights in. Not the cold, dark cell he had been viciously thrown in after refusing, yet again to shoot the gun.

"Remember Dick, everything you have is a reward for something, and I can take it all away as quickly as it was given to you." Slade had told him after brutally throwing his body into the cold room, like a rag doll.

But by far the worst thing he hated about his punishments was seeing his mask less face whenever he looked in the mirror. Robin still had no mask to cover his aching eyes and that made him just as insecure as if he was naked.

He didn't like it. He didn't like it one bit. The past week had been pure hell all because of a stupid little weapon Robin refused to use. But he wouldn't give in…

…not yet anyway…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
"Dick, get over here now. I will not have you hiding in the shadows." Slade called from his desk in the main room. Robin stepped out of the shadows that had been concealing him for the past five minutes.

"Stop calling me that." He said defiantly, pushing he shoulders back and trying to stand taller, his attempt at looking more intimidating ruined by the obvious emotions in his eyes.

Slade just laughed and shook his head. "What else is there to call you, my boy? You aren't Robin anymore, you don't want me to call you Dick or Richard, you refuse to respond to Renegade, and you despise the word apprentice." Slade swiveled around in his chair to look at the boy, who didn't respond with anything but a cold glare.

"Now, go dress in your uniform, we're going out." Slade moved back to his desk and began putting away all the papers scattered across the desk.

Robin, barely able to hide his surprise at this news turned and began walking down the hall towards his more favored room. Once inside, he stripped off the sweaty exercise clothes he had been wearing and began putting on the metal plated uniform he had grown to take a liking to. Although it represented evil, the armor actually helped a lot during fights, despite the difficulty to do any complicated acrobatics in it.

He peaked at himself in the mirror as he stretched the shirt over his head. His heart skipped a beat when he saw it.

There it was, proof of who he now belonged too, the once burning red S now a scar marring the skin over his heart for the rest of eternity. If he ever got out of here and back to his normal life, he would find a way to get it removed. He would pour acid on it to kill the layers of skin if he had too.

After putting on the rest of the armor and his shoes Robin walked down the hall and back to the main room where Slade was waiting.

To his surprise and happiness, Slade handed him his belt and domino mask, the ends pointing up to make it look more evil. As he put on the belt, he noticed how light weight it felt.

"It's empty" The obvious statement sounded more like a question than a sentence. Robin stared at Slade as he clicked it around his waist, waiting for an answer.

"Where we're going you won't need weapons." Slade walked to the two large metal doors leading out of the Haunt and into underground tunnels and turned towards Robin.

"From the time we step out of this Haunt to the time we come back you will respond to and be called Renegade and Renegade only. You will not speak unless spoken to and will address me as Master. Do you understand?" The serious tone Slade was using told Robin loud and clear that if he didn't obey his friends would soon be bright orange.

"Yes" Robin nodded his head vigorously to show his understanding and began walking out the doors.

"Yes what?"

"Yes Master." Robin corrected himself as he followed Slade up a flight of stairs and out another door.

Outside a black car was waiting for them. It was dark and cold outside, the icy air biting at his nose. One of the worst things about the Haunt was its lack of windows. Robin hated having to rely on time to tell whether it was dark or light outside.  
Wintergreen was waiting at the driver's seat inside the car as Slade and Robin slid in the back. As Wintergreen drove towards their destination, Robin held his tongue. He wanted to ask where they were going, but he knew it was pointless. That Slade wouldn't dare share such important information with him.

As they drove, he couldn't help but let his imagination run wild. Were they going to some high tech science lab to steal something? Were they going to the airport? Possibly leaving Jump? Or, worst of all, were they going to fulfill a contract? Robin knew Slade killed people for money, and that was another reason to add to the list of why he refused to shoot the gun. If he began shooting guns, then it was just a matter of time before the plastic targets became people.

As the car slowed to a stop Robin dared to look out the window.

They had pulled into the parking lot of what looked like a run down bar.

As Robin followed Slade inside he noticed a cruel looking thug watching him from where he stood across the street.

Inside the place looked worse than the outside. The walls were covered in grime, and the air was thick with cigarette smoke. Waitresses wove their way through the many wooden tables to deliver alcohol to people who should not be consuming any.

But the worst part about the place was the people. Robin recognized a few of the thugs and criminals he had taken down as a Titan.

He could spot Johnny Rancid, Red X, even Kitten and her creepy boyfriend Fang.

Oh God, he prayed none of them would recognize him. Robin hoped that Slade wouldn't  
leave him here alone to go talk to some important person. He would be killed before the night was over.

"Seeing some familiar faces, I'm sure." Slade chuckled darkly as he looked around. Before Robin had time to answer he began walking towards an elevator in the very back of the bar.

Slade pressed the grimy down button and seconds later the doors opened to reveal a man in a suit waiting.

"Good evening, Sir. I assume you are here to attend the meeting?" The man had shaggy brown hair and a vacant look in his eyes, showing that he was just asking the question to prevent his head from being dislocated from his body.

"Yes," Slade answered and the man pressed a button to make the elevator doors close.

As the elevator jerked downwards the man took a quick glance at Robin before asking, "Is this young man with you? The others weren't aware you were bringing a guest."

"Yes, this is my apprentice Renegade. I'm sure they won't mind, since they've brought theirs many times before." Robin could tell that Slade was becoming slightly annoyed with the man, but luckily for all three the elevator chose that time to open the doors once again.

Inside the room were four people. The first was a woman with deep red hair in a tight, sleeveless, black jumpsuit and boots. Sitting next to her was a girl that looked to be about Robin's age, in a short, black lace dress with black high tops. The girl had long wavy blonde hair and bangs that almost covered her eyes. She also wore a black masquerade mask.

Sitting across from them was a man with a mop of brown hair on his head. He wore a black suit and tie. He reminded Robin of one of the men he would see attending one of Bruce's board meetings back at Wayne Enterprises.

Sitting next to him was a boy who looked a little younger than Robin and the girl, maybe 12 or 13 years old. His hair was the color of asphalt, and it came down just past the boy's ears. He wore a black shirt and skinny jeans. He could tell that, unlike himself, the boy was punished by lack of food because his bones were clearly shown and his skin was a pale white.

"Ah, so the apprentice you tell us about is real. It's nice to finally see what you've been blabbing about for months." The woman spoke with a slight Russian accent. The smirk on her face made her dark eyes sparkled with a freighting gleam.

Slade chuckled and put his hand on Robin's shoulder. "Yes, he's real. And well trained, if I do say so myself."

Robin knew Slade was just trying to gloat about his perfect apprentice, even though Robin was far from perfect.

"What's your name boy?" The man asked in a deep and thunderous voice, filling the room with its echo.

Robin swallowed hard before answering, "Renegade"

"I'm Red Herring, and this is Masquerade. That's Fallacious and his apprentice Arsenal." the redhead spoke while pointing to each person.

"Speaking of Arsenal and Masquerade, why don't you follow them into the other room? You three will wait in there while we talk." Slade told Robin as he took a seat at the table.

"Yes Master." Robin replied and followed the other two down the hall and through the door.

The inside looked the same as the previous room, with bare walls and nothing but a wooden table and chairs. All three of the teenagers took a seat at the table and examined each other quietly.

"So... How old are you guys?" Robin shifted uncomfortably as the two sets of eyes glared at him.

"15" The girl stated.

"13" The younger boy leaned back in his chair and put his feet on the table.

"So... You guys are like... Their apprentices or whatever?"

"For the past three years," The girl seemed uninterested in Robin and turned her gaze to look at the back wall.

After an hour of awkward silence Red Herring came to get them and bring them back to the main room.

Inside, the table and chairs had been pushed off to the side and the two men stood in the center of the room.

Masquerade took off her gloves and began wrapping athletic tape around her hands while Arsenal took a change of clothes from his master and walked away to go change.

At first Robin was confused, but when Slade began handing him things to put in his belt, he realized what they were about to do.

He, Masquerade, and Arsenal were about to go steal something.

**I can't say that I'm as proud of this chapter as the first two. I don't know why I just… I'm bad at writing boring actions. I can do fight scenes, describing, and dialogue pretty well but things like 'He walked to another room' bug me when I try to write them :/ **

**Oh and, I didn't think I needed to mention this but I will just in case. I DO NOT OWN TEEN TITANS OR ANYTHING DC COMICS RELATED. If I owned Teen Titans there would be a season all about what happened while Robin and Terra were Slade's Apprentices. BUT DO YOU SEEEEE ANY COOL EPSIODES LIKE THAT!? Yeah, I didn't think so. You are however, welcome to steal any of my Ocs, because most of them are losers . **


	4. Comfort

**Ahhh guys I am sooooo sorry for the wait. In my defense I've had a hard past couple weeks. A good friend died, golf was finishing up, and I started to get my first round of tests at school. So anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. I don't plan on adding these OC's to the story too often, but I wanted Robin to get out of the Haunt and get a little adrenaline pumping in his veins. So anyways, I got some more reviews for chapter 3! YAY! **

**Dreams2Paper11: Don't worry, I think Robin is the only one out of the three that doesn't make a mistake in this chapter. **

**The strong silver flower: Haha thanks, I try and be descriptive when I can, because I'm really not that good at adding it subtly. But whatever… **

**Sadie Aurora Night: I've actually been working on a plan for something like that… I just want to get farther into this story before I start another one, because I can really only focus on one at a time. I'll let you know when I post the first 'episode' ;) **

**yorkiepudding: Thanks! I always try! **

**ida4444: I know what you mean, that's exactly what I do. I've done it so much on reviewers for other stories that I can't do it on the people that review mine because I've already read their stories. **

* * *

"Remember the objective Renegade, get in, get the device, get out. Simple." Slade spoke quickly while the others in the room were making their preparations for the night.

Masquerade was putting on her gloves and placing her hair in a high ponytail while Arsenal had just come out of another room wearing a silver suit with red accents.

"Ready?" Masquerade asked the two boys as she strapped a deathly looking sword to her side. The two boys nodded silently and off the trio went, blending into the shadows that concealed any light in the city.

The trip to their target was not a task of much importance, since the building was easy to spot. It was after all, one of the biggest buildings in all of Jump.

The bright spotlights illuminating the large 'Wayne Enterprises' sign created an eerie glow that cast upon the small hatch in the roof which was, of course locked at all times.

But it was nothing a skilled thief like Arsenal couldn't handle. After all, this was the kind of stuff he was trained to do.

The halls were mostly dark give or take a few. This made it easy for the trio to find the right room that contained the information chip they were after without much disturbance from guards.

Stepping inside the room, Renegade could see that the chip was not of much importance to the company or to Bruce because the security was very low, just a glass case which was surrounded by motion sensors.

Masquerade and Arsenal were buy trying to figure out a way they could sneak their hands past the motion sensors and grab the chip, while Renegade was decoding the four number password that would open the case and turn the sensors off.

Being the ward of Bruce Wayne himself, Renegade should've easily known the password, but since the device was new and this was not the same building that he visited so often in Gotham, he had good reason to be unsure. If he guessed the incorrect password, then alarms would probably go off and every guard in the building would know they were here. So, seeing no other way to get the case open, Renegade tried his best guess, the date of Mr. and Mrs. Wayne's death.

Suddenly alarms started blaring, but it wasn't because he had entered the wrong password, but because Arsenal had accidentally tripped off one of the motion sensors while trying to slither his thin hand past it.

In a frenzied panic, he grabbed the chip and the three thieves ran through the door they came in. Renegade ran as fast as he could, not wanting to meet a certain team of superheroes tonight.

"Stop!" A guard yelled after them and the three turned his way and stood with swords, fists, and bow staffs raised high, ready for a fight.

Yelling loudly, Arsenal was the first to charge throwing multiple punches and jabs at a few of the security guards while the remaining two villains took care of the rest.

Renegade didn't find fighting the guards hard to do, in fact he found it relatively easy. Normally he would do these kinds of missions alone, having to face all the guards by himself.

"Behind you," Slade spoke through his earpiece, reminding Robin that the three masters were indeed watching.

Quickly Renegade spun around and slammed a guard in the face with his staff, hearing the sickly crunch of the man's nose snap and the pathetic cry leaping from his moth.

"Ahh!" Renegade and Arsenal turned towards the high pitched sound and found Masquerade having a hard time with some large and meaner looking guards.

Quickly Renegade ran over to the girl and began deflecting punches from the men with his staff, while causing a few more injuries for them in the process. He turned just in time to see a man wrap his arms around Masquerade from behind, and began moving towards the two. But before he could arrive Masquerade kicked her leg high into the air and hit the man in the center of his face, causing a loud, piercing scream to fill the once peaceful hallway.

Most of the guards had now passed out or were unable to get up and fight, so the trio once again made it's way towards the roof where they again concealed themselves with shadows and faded away from the crime scene.

Once back at the bar, Renegade noticed looks of anger on Red Herring and Fallacious' faces, causing them to look like deadly hawks eyeing their prey. But when Renegade turned expecting to see the same angry glint in Slade's eye, it was not there. Instead, it was replaced by what looked to be proudness and... happiness?

And truth be told, Renegade felt the same way.

* * *

As soon as he was back at the Haunt, Robin had let Wintergreen tend to his minor wounds then made his way towards his bedroom for some much needed sleep.

"You know, he has been improving much in the past month. He has had far less injuries... from both missions and from...discipline." Wintergreen told Slade as he set down a mug if coffee in front of the man.

"Yes I've noticed, I didn't want to say anything to corrupt his good behavior, but other than the gun incident there hasn't been much need for any discipline." Slade responded while flipping through some papers on his desk. "Maybe he has finally realized his place as my apprentice." Slade added

Wintergreen just chuckled and began cleaning up things around the main room. Why Slade had such an obsession with gears he didn't know, but the constant ticking could become even worse if the gears were not properly maintained.

Close to an hour later everything was still going peacefully throughout the Haunt, until suddenly a sharp, horror filled scream pierced the stale air.

Wintergreen briefly glanced at Slade, who hadn't even looked up from his papers and sighed.

"Slade, that's the third time this week. Would you please go talk to the poor boy? I know comforting isn't your best skill, but when your boys had bad dreams you comforted them. For Heavens sake, it's a wonder anyone around her can get any sleep at all with his screaming"

When Slade still stayed glued to his chair Wintergreen stopped and stared at him for a good minute until finally the man sighed heavily and looked up at his good friend.

"Fine."

* * *

"No! No, no, no, no!" Robin bolted up in his sweat covered bed, still begging his parents not to jump. But they weren't. They were no longer giving him looks if shame, and Zucco was no longer holding him back, forcing him to stare as his parents dropped to their death.

"Please, no..." The near silent whisper could barely be made out as it escaped his lips and the first tears fell.

The first time he had had a nightmare at the Haunt, Wintergreen had come to comfort him. But as the dreams became more common he stopped coming and Robin was left alone to cry.

One time, Slade had yelled at him and beaten him for crying. He told Robin that crying was for the weak, and that no apprentice of his would ever be weak.

So, that's why, when the metal door swished open Robin quickly wiped the tears from his eyes and looked up at the man entering the room.

He had expected Wintergreen, but just like the other day it was Slade at the door instead.

Robin quickly turned his head away, and began to pull the covers up over his head when a hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"Let's just talk for a little bit." Slade said in a comforting voice as he sat down on the edge of the bed.

"I don't really want to talk..." Robin mumbled quietly.

"Another nightmare? That's the third one this week," Slade said, completely disregarding what Robin had just told him. "Are they all the same?"

"Relatively" Robin mumbled, staring down at his sweaty palms.

"About your parents, Dick?" Slade tilted his unmasked face slightly lower so that he could see Robin's face better, and found the boy to be holding back tears.

Dick nodded silently, afraid that if he spoke he would loose control and begin crying again.

The pair sat in silence for a moment before Dick muttered, "What if they're disappointed in me Slade? In what I've become?" He tilted his head up, staring into Slade's one cold grey eye with two bright blue ones, sparkling with fresh tears.

"Dick..." Slade began comfortingly, placing a hand on the boy's back, "I think that, in your circumstances and considering all you have been through, they would be proud just to know that you've always tried your hardest."

"Now, just try and get some rest okay? I don't want you tired during training tomorrow." Robin smiled slightly and nodded, before laying down and closing his eyes.

Slade made his way towards the door, and just as he was about to leave, Robin stopped him.

"Slade?" The boy looked up at him with sleepy eyes and waited for the man to nod before continuing.

"Thank you."

* * *

**Hope you guys liked this one so… review? I don't mean to sound cliché, but you guys truly are my inspiration. I've read, reviewed, and favorited most of the stories you guys have written or are writing right now. It's always awesome to see a name I recognize when you guys review. **


	5. Boredom

**Why hello there, I bet you weren't expecting an update this quick were you? Yeah, well I'm just awesome like that. No, really I just wanted to give you guys some Robin/ Dick Grayson action because the new episode of Young Justice today lacked him greatly, which made me so sad. But anyways, for the next few days we have some college girls staying with our family, so I can't promise I will get ANY work done on the next chapter. Oh, and there is a cliffhanger. Your welcome :) **

**The strong silver flower: Thanks! I was hoping it was a good fight scene, because I don't really like writing those. Dialogue is really my strong point.  
**

**Sadie Aurora Night: Thanks, your compliment means a lot to me, I'm trying to get their bond a lot closer than the TV show ever did.  
**

** : Thanks! Hope you like this chapter, I think you will.  
**

**ida4444: There is definitely more to come, and it's right below this :)  
**

**Tialovessladin: To be honest, when I saw your pen name I got a little worried that you would complain about the lack of slash, but you're nice! So YAY!  
**

**On with the show!  
**

* * *

The next morning at breakfast, both Slade and Robin had acted as if nothing had ever occurred the night before. But inside, both were feeling emotions they had not felt in months.

For Slade, that emotion was nervousness. Last night Robin had taken a giant step in the direction that Slade had been trying to get him to take for quite some time. Although the boy still wasn't completely accepting of his new life, he had finally gotten past the point of stubbornness and now had a much calmer reaction to any scenario he was placed in. It was such a silly thing to be nervous over, but Slade being a master planner himself, and did not like being on the unknown side of Robin's plan.

But what if Robin didn't even have a plan?

This was what Slade was hoping for. That the kid had truly given up the stubbornness, and wasn't just acting good to get something he wanted.

For Robin, this unknown emotion was quite the opposite. He felt strangely... calm. His heart was no longer racing at an unhealthy speed, and he no longer felt like picking up his chair and throwing it at the nearest person.

No, in fact he felt quite the opposite. It was a nice feeling to have, really. He didn't feel the need to constantly be on his toes, waiting for the next blow Slade might deliver.

And frankly, at this point in his situation, Robin didn't feel like trying to escape anymore. Last night as he was trying to go to sleep he came to the conclusion that even if he did ever leave Slade and this apprenticeship behind, he couldn't go back to being Robin.

No, he had changed far too much to fit back into that role. Robin and the people surrounding him had worked hard to create this facade, this mold that Robin had fit into so perfectly. But as time went on, as he continued to be stuck in this apprenticeship, Robin began to change from that mold.

It was like creating a gingerbread man, but suddenly decided you wanted to make a candy cane shaped cookie instead so you changed the shape. But when you put the candy cane cookie back in the gingerbread mold it didn't fit right.

This was how Robin felt. He was still the same person. Physically, at least. He still had his dark ebony hair, the bright blue eyes, and that certain way he would draw out words to create emphasize.

But inside, emotionally, he was a much different person.

It was strange really, he didn't feel any different, and he didn't _feel _broken. But he was awfully close to becoming broken.

No, he had finally decided that he could no longer fit into that gingerbread man shaped mold.

"Slade," Robin said in between bites, "I want to try to shoot that gun." it took all the strength he had to say those few words, but he felt he was ready to do it. He knew that Slade would eventually make him do it anyways, so he might as well get it out of the way before the man decided to beat him into submission.

* * *

The walk to the training room was like walking to his execution for Robin. He had gone over how to shoot the gun many times throughout the night, afraid to mess up and was still praying that he wouldn't.

But he could do this; he just had to keep telling himself that. But now, standing here with the gun in his sweaty hands he began to hate himself for his bravery.

Slade stood back with his arms folded across his chest, waiting for Robin to turn around once again and take his earlier words back.

But he didn't. Robin held the gun up and pointed it at the target. He placed his finger on the trigger and pulled.

But nothing happened.

Robin's heart stopped momentarily. Had he done something wrong? No, he was sure he had done everything exactly as Slade had told him to so what had happened?

He pulled the gun apart and peered inside. Sure enough, the bullets were there, but after taking them out and giving them a closer examination Robin saw what had happened.

"Blanks. You thought I would shoot you." He stated accusingly as he spun on his heels to face Slade.

The man just shrugged and replied, "Better safe than have a bullet hole in your chest."

"Yeah... I guess..." Robin mumbled before handing the weapon back to Slade.

* * *

Training continued as it normally did, with physical training, lunch, then things like hacking and robotics.

Robin didn't particularly like the robotics lessons, but it was a nice break for his worn out body. Right now he was trying to connect the wires in an arm to the rest of the robot's body. And he was failing miserably.

"Blue to red, black to green. No...blue to green and red to black?" He mumbled as he half heartily switched the wires around.

"Focus. Weren't you listening when I went over this?" Slade was obviously becoming frustrated with Robin's lack in effort.

"Apparently not..." Robin mumbled again, earning himself a smack across the face.

Eventually however, he did discover how to re-attach the robot's arm. Once the stupid training was finally over for the day, Robin was shooed off to go eat dinner with Wintergreen. Truthfully, he loved the nights when Slade was occupied and he ate dinner with Wintergreen instead. Things were much less stressful, and sometimes he and Wintergreen could actually have a normal conversation.

Like tonight, "There was an earthquake in Missouri today, an 8.2 on the scales." Wintergreen told him as he placed a full plate of food down in front of Robin before taking his seat. "So far there are 62 dead and 138 missing."

"That doesn't sound good. Isn't there a major fault line somewhere in Missouri?" Robin asks casually as he gulps down some water.

"Oh, it mostly hit the Southeastern corner of the state, not many big cities are located there. Which is good, because if it had hit a big city the effects would have been much greater and the death rate would've been much higher as well." He loved the way Wintergreen talked. It almost sounded like Alfred, with the years of wisdom behind his words. But unlike the more favored butler Wintergreen did not have an accent.

Their conversation went on like this for the continuation of dinner. They mostly talked of things that had little to no importance in their lives until Wintergreen decided Robin needed to go to bed.

But as Robin got into bed, he could instantly tell that he wouldn't be able to fall asleep easily. He just wasn't tired. He felt as though any second that he lay here in bed he would burst into a million tiny atoms all moving around. After thirty minutes of just lying down he began pacing the room. Normally if he couldn't sleep it was because something was weighing heavily on his mind, but right now his head felt as clear as a summer day.

Turning around, he walked into the bathroom and flicked the lights on. There really wasn't much in the bathroom, just a toilet, shower, sink, and mirror. His toothbrush and other toiletries were shoved in the cabinet under the sink, but that wasn't why he had come in the room.

Dick stared at his reflection in the mirror, examining his many features. His unmasked eyes shone brightly, despite the boredom he could easily see in them. His ebony hair fell loosely around his face and almost touched his eyebrows. Because of the lack of hair gel, Robin had been forced to just let his hair do whatever it wanted, but when he fought... it often got in the way.

He made a mental note to ask Wintergreen to cut it sometime soon. Dick was about to leave the room when he suddenly stopped and turned towards the mirror again. Gently lifting his shirt over his head, Dick examined the bleach white bandages that covered most of his upper torso. Slowly, he peeled the gauze off to reveal the burn it covered.

The burn had thankfully healed without much trouble, but had unfortunately scarred in almost a perfect 'S'. It made Robin sick to look at, but he just couldn't help himself. The burn was directly where the S on his uniform was, so at a quick glance Robin couldn't even tell if he was wearing the stupid uniform or not.

Robin put some fresh bandages on and walked out of the room once again. He was just so... bored. If only he had someone to talk to. But there was no one. Slade was gone and Wintergreen had probably fallen asleep already. Maybe if he faked a nightmare...

No, that was a ridiculous idea. He just needed to walk around a little bit. Surely nobody would mind if he just did a little training... right?

Deciding that it was harmless Dick stepped out of his room and down the hall towards the training room. Once inside, he flicked on the lights and looked around. The clock on the wall read 12:46. Dick decided that he would just train until 2:00, and then he would go to bed.

For a good hour or so Dick hit the punching bag and went through the obstacle course a few times. Soon he became bored once again and he looked around the room once more.

Maybe he could spar with a robot, or practice his acrobatics or...

His eyes fell on the cabinet holding most of the weapons in the room. It consisted of bow staffs, explosives, and...

Guns.

He knew it was a crazy idea, which he would get into huge trouble for he took the gun. But he wasn't going to shoot anyone, just... a little target practice.

Making sure the gun had a silencer properly attached to it; Robin took the gun and six bullets into the room with the shooting range.

Just six bullets, he told himself. Once he had shot all six he would put the gun back and go back to bed.

He put the first bullet in the gun, held it up, aimed at the target, put his finger on the trigger and...

"Just what do you think you're doing young man?"

* * *

**I warned you there would be a cliffhanger :) Sorry about my meanness. Anyways, when yo guys review I want you to tell me if you think Slade or Wintergreen said that. I myself haven't decided yet, and I need your opinion on who it should be. **

**Also! I just wanted to take this time to focus a little on how this story is going to go. So I think we're what, five chapters in? Yeah, so I'm not sure exactly how many chapters this will be, but I'm think around 25. I know for sure there will be a sequel, and I also know that I definetly have it and most of this story planned out.  
**

**In the second chapter I told you guys the story would be completly with Robin and Slade, but I'm thinking around chapter 10 I might need a chapter with Batman instead. But don't worry, it will still have Slade and Robin in it. :)  
**

**REVIEW!  
**


	6. Punishments and Panic Attacks

**Phew! It took a lot of effort to get this chapter out so soon. But, I am proud to say that it is a very eventful chapter. Possibly one of my favorites. I felt bad about leaving you guys with a cliffhanger, so I made this chapter SUPPPERRRR good. :) Your welcome. **

**Dreams2Paper11: True, but remember, if someone just walked in on a person who reaaaallllyyy wanted to escape holding a gun what would they probably assume?  
**

**Sadie Aurora Night: Thanks for the offer, I'll take you up on that when I get a case of writers block. I think you'll really like this chapter.  
**

**jordylilly777: Ohhhhhh yes, you my friend, are a good person. XD**

**ida4444: That... is an AMAZING idea. If it weren't so early in the story it would totally be him.  
**

**NSwisher1572: Don't worry, I updated now! And yes, I can totally see Robin freaking out over the whole bond thingy. I am sad however, to say that this chapter COULD be considered a cliffhanger as well. But don't worry, I've already got half of the next chapter written out in my head.  
**

**NOW READ PEOPLE!**

* * *

"Wintergreen! I-I was just... I couldn't sleep and… please don't tell Slade!" Robin begged the old man standing in the doorway, a disapproving frown on his face. Slowly, he walked towards Robin and took the gun from his hand.

"And what, young man, were you planning on doing with this?" Wintergreen shook the gun angrily at the boy, a cold and livid look in his worn eyes.

"I-I was just... target practice... I couldn't sleep..." Wintergreen set the gun down on the nearby table and stepped towards the boy.

"Richard, did you have permission to leave your room?"

"No but-"

"Did you have permission to wander around freely, _by yourself_?"

"No I just-"

"Did you have permission to take that gun?"

"No but Slade-

"Did you have permission to shoot the gun?"

"I... no..."

"Then why did you?" Wintergreen's old eyes bore into Robin's so very young ones, searching for any hint of an excuse.

"I couldn't sleep... I was bored and I... I'm sorry." Robin sighed and heavily and sunk to the floor, wrapping his arms around himself.

Wintergreen turned and walked towards the door, but stopped at the sound of moving.

"Wintergreen... are you... are you going to tell Slade?" Dick's entire body shook intensely with fear.

"Well, it depends. Would you like me to tell Slade, or would you like to tell him yourself?"

Robin just continued to stare at his knees, which were hugged closely to his chest by his arms. When he didn't respond Wintergreen just smirked lightly and replied,

"That's what I thought. But don't worry; he won't be back until morning, so you don't have to worry about your punishment until then."

Dick knew the old man was just trying to comfort him, but somehow the mention that he would in fact be punished made the knot in his stomach tighter.

* * *

Robin was in such a deep sleep that he didn't even notice he had been carried to the main room by Slade until the man harshly dropped him on the cold floor.

He tried to stay quiet as best as he could, knowing that Slade was probably very irritated with him right now.

"So, Apprentice... Wintergreen told me a very interesting story this morning..." The last words trailed off, leaving Dick's mind to wonder what was coming next.

"I didn't think you would care..."'Robin mumbled timidly, trying to make the words sound more afraid than defiant.

"I wouldn't care if you were training with things you have done before, but shooting a gun? You don't even know how to or have _ever_shot a gun using bullets. The recoil could've broken your arm. Tell me, did you know about the recoil, Richard?"

Now Robin had become slightly angry. He had originally thought that Slade would just beat him, say a few cruel words and move on, but this? These mind games and lectures Slade were giving would be a far worse punishment.

"No," Robin looked down at his hands, which were once again wrapped around his knees tightly, like a snake protecting its babies.

Suddenly Robin was standing again, facing the floor as Slade twist his arm in unnatural positions behind his back.

"No _what_?" Slade moved his arm into a new, much more painful position.

"No, Master." It took every ounce of energy Robin had to smash down any remaining pieces of pride left in him and say those words. Over the months they had become easier to say, but he still had to make an effort to force them from his mouth.

"Maybe I should just break your arm, then I wouldn't have to worry about you doing things you are not supposed to do."

Dick let a small, barely audible whimper escape his lips, and Slade only twisted and pulled his arm more in response. And just when Robin was sure the bone would snap...

He could feel every small bone in his hand being crushed.

The sound was sickening. It was as if someone had dropped a teacup, each individual piece making a noise that staccato the air like a million violins. The sound was beautiful, yet horrifying at the same time.

Robin did not attempt to restrain the bloodcurdling scream that rushed so quickly past his lips, knowing that there was no use in trying to trap the noise inside himself.

He quickly dropped to his knees, holding his right hand with his left, cradling it against his chest. His eyes were shut tightly, a dam holding in all the rapid water wanting so badly to escape and fall freely down his face.

Robin felt his thick ebony hair being pulled back by Slade's tight grip and the hot breath so close to his face.

"You are not to leave your room unless you are granted permission, and you are not to train without supervision. Do I make myself clear?" Slade spoke the venomous words quietly, making them somehow more threatening and real.

"Yes," Robin swallowed the small amount of blood pooling in his mouth before continuing, "Master"

His head was released and he fell to the floor once again. Dick just felt like curling up on the hard stone floor and dying, but suddenly Wintergreen was there helping him up and practically dragging him to the medical room.

His vision was becoming hazy, and he could only remember some things. He had forgotten why his hand hurt so badly, but somehow he knew it involved Slade and a gun.

"Richard," Wintergreen spoke softly as he set the boy down on a medical bed. "I'm going to give you a sedative so you can sleep while I fix your hand okay?" He slipped the thin needle into the teen's arm and soon his vision became even hazier.

"Mhhmmnm" Dick tried to say something to the old man, but his numb lips couldn't form words. It was just so hard...

* * *

It took awhile, but once Wintergreen had snapped the bones back into place and put a cast on Dick's hand he went to find Slade, who was in the training room.

His unmasked face was covered with sweat, and he was hitting the punching bag so hard that his knuckles bled.

"If you don't stop soon I'll have to be putting a cast on your hand as well," Wintergreen joked lightly, stepping into the room and catching Slade's eye.

"How is he?" Slade asked, completely ignoring Wintergreens advice to stop what he was doing.

"Not well, many bones in his hand are crushed. They will take at least six weeks to heal." Wintergreen replied, the disappointment evident in his voice.

"If you would let me give him the healing serum it would only take sixty seconds." Slade pointed out, taking notice to the large frown that sat on his friend's face.

"There is a simpler way, you know. It doesn't take beating and torture to discipline someone."

"In this business Wintergreen, I'm afraid that it does." Slade had stopped punching now, and had moved on to furiously kicking the worn out bag.

"You're killing him, Slade! The boy can't take much more. He _will_ break eventually; he's not as strong as you." Wintergreen protested, raising his voice only slightly. "If you _ever _expect him to become a loyal apprentice you must become the master he can rely on. Your way of treating him goes from one extreme to another, it's wearing on the poor boy's mind, Slade. Soon enough he'll be just like another one of your Sladebots."

"Wintergreen," Slade replied in a warning tone, "I'm trying to break the boy, remember? I have to tear down all the morals that stupid bat has built. I must replace them with what I want him to believe."

"All I'm asking is that you be _gentle _when you break him, wouldn't you rather him be obedient because he wanted to, not because he was afraid of what you might do to him?" Wintergreen stepped closer to the mercenary, attempting to make the stubborn man see things his way.

"Right now, I'm just trying to get him to be obedient. Once he's there I can start on building a bond with him." Slade stopped and walked towards a bench, picking up his water bottle and gulping down half of its fill.

"He will never get there; he will start believing that all his life _is_ is fear and pain. It will consume him. Do you want him to become a _masochist_?"

"I _want _him to be a loyal apprentice."

"He'll be in a strait jacket before he'll become that."

* * *

Dick was having a panic attack. He didn't know why, but he couldn't get enough air. He felt like someone had trapped him in a cage, a cage with no air.

He couldn't get up either. He couldn't will his limbs to cooperate, to do what his brain told them to do.

_To just move. _

In his struggle to get air, he fell off the bed and landed on his side. The cold of the floor helped to cool his racing body temperature, but his lungs were still tightly constrained in his chest.

He tried to go through the things Bruce told him to do in this kind of situation, but just thinking of Bruce only caused the situation to become worse.

His vision became hazy, his head was pounding and his heart was racing. He took short, almost useless breaths. He was hyperventilating. He couldn't breathe...

_He couldn't breathe!_

* * *

**Hehe, I personally loved this chapter. Especially the line where Wintergreen says 'He'll be in a straitjacket before he'll become that.' FEISTY BUTLER! Anyways, I'm going to go write the next chapter before one of you decides to come find me and kill me for giving you guys TWO CLIFFHANGERS IN A ROW. I"M SO SORRY! **_  
_


	7. Tidal Waves and Surfers

**Ughhhhhh I'm sorry guys! It feels like an eternity since I've updated, but I don't think it's even been a week. That's not too bad of a wait is it? I hope not… **

**Anyways, I would make excuses about how I was super busy and stuff but truthfully I just wasn't all that excited to write this chapter. I'm still not completely satisfied with it, but I got over my pickiness so you guys could have the chapter sooner rather than later. Anyways… review responses! (I'm getting so many now I may have to start replying one on one to these, which sucks because I know some of you ask questions that others would like to know the answer too as well, but we'll see…) **

**Dreams2Paper11: Haha you are the only one that guessed right! You need a crown or something…**

**RedHound: Thanks for the many reviews! Your constructive criticism really helps! **

**Sadie Aurora Night: I wish I could answer your questions, I really do! Unfortunately I would ruin the suspense and all that stuff for you. Great chapter on your story by the way! I would have reviewed but I was reading under my desk in study hall since I'm not supposed to have my phone out at school. **

**ida4444: Haha don't worry, there isn't a cliffhanger in this chapter. **

**coolnessgirl: He starts to catch on in this chapter, so don't worry. The next couple chapters should defiantly not be boring! (Well, I think this one is pretty boring but…) **

**NSwisher1572: Ahhh! DON'T KILL ME! I updated okay? And guess what?! NO CLIFFHANGER THIS TIME! **

**Guest: Haha thanks, hopefully you think this update is fast enough! I feel like it's been forever since I updated…**

* * *

Dick was, to say the least, severely depressed.

The depression had comedown on him like a huge tidal wave on and un-expecting surfer. Knocking him down and carrying him away.

The next six days, Robin sat in the middle of the floor in his room, hugging his knees to his chest once again. _He_called the six days solitary confinement, Slade and Wintergreen called it 'resting'.

He didn't eat. No, even when Wintergreen brought him food, he just waited until he was sure the man was gone, and then flushed all the food and medicine down the toilet. Wintergreen had noticed, and probably told Slade, but Dick didn't care. He didn't care about anything anymore.

His hand still hurt, but he didn't say anything about it. The pills he flushed down the toilet were probably supposed to help with that, but he didn't want help. He just wanted a quiet place to think.

_And what about?_ Well, a lot of things really. The biggest though, was whether or not he _wanted_to be here. Dick knew he wanted to be here for the Titans, but what about himself? Had he finally accepted Slade?

Today, like usual, Wintergreen came at exactly noon to bring him food. But this time, all he carried on the wooden tray was a glass of water and a small stark white pill. He set the tray down on the bed like he always did, but this time he took the water and pill and walked over to where Dick was curled up.

Crouching down beside him, Wintergreen spoke in a soft voice "Richard, you must take this pill." The voice was calm, yet stern. In response, Dick only shook his head stubbornly. He had been doing that a lot lately, never using words to respond, only a nod or shake of his head.

"If you don't take this pill, then I will just have to give it to you in a shot instead." At hearing this, Dick reluctantly took the pill and water from Wintergreen, taking the pill and gulping down the entire glass of water. He handed the cup back to the old man, expecting him to leave now but he stayed. And then Dick realized why.

He wanted to see the effects of the pill.

"What... what did that pill do to me?" He whispered quietly, the first words he had uttered in almost a week.

"Pardon?" Wintergreen leaned in closer, but the former boy wonder crawled backwards until his back thumped lightly against the wall.

"What did that pill do to me!?" Dick nearly shouted the fear and horror clearly evident on his face.

"Nothing major, Dick just-"

"Nothing major!? And what do you consider major? What did it do to me!?" He was yelling now, and his voice was carried all throughout the Haunt, filling it's empty halls with his anxious and fearful screams.

"Richard, calm down. Nothing bad is going to happen. It's just an anti-depressant-"

"Anti-depressant!?" Dick cut him off once again. This only seemed to make the fear inside him grow. What was going on? Truthfully, Dick felt as though he had no control over his body right now. His emotions were running haywire and he couldn't... he couldn't...

Suddenly Slade was there pinning his small body to the wall by holding back his shoulders.

"Dick," Slade's voice was smooth as always, but this time... it was a different type of smooth, a less cruel sounding tone. "Calm... down..." Slade's words did little help in calming him down, but the man's presence suddenly made him feel safe. Dick thought that feeling safe around Slade should've made his emotions go haywire again, but his body became calm and he sunk to the floor. He breathing became lighter and his heart stopped racing at impossible speeds.

"What's happening to me?" He whispered to himself. Slade crouched down next to him, like Wintergreen had just a few minutes earlier.

"You're in a state of depression Dick. The pill was just to help you recover from that." Slade reached towards Dick in an attempt to comfort him, but the boy only curled in on himself more.

"Not depression... can't control my emotions." Dick mumbled. The boy was cradling his broken hand, which was covered in blood soaked bandages. They hadn't been changed in over a week due to the fact that Wintergreen could never get the distraught boy to let him close enough to change them.

"Does your hand hurt?" Slade took the boy's hand in his own and began taking off the bandages to reveal a mangled looking mess. Contusions covered the pale skin, making the limb look like a rotted vegetable. Slade felt a pang of guilt at the sight, feeling as though his anger may have gotten the better of him.

"Why don't you let Wintergreen clean your hand up and give you some painkillers, then you can go eat some food?" Dick nodded and stood, following Wintergreen towards the medical room.

* * *

The following days were much better than anyone could have expected with Robin's condition. Nobody really expected the boy to do much, but his quiet and obedient state had proved to be useful in training him.

One of the downsides to his new attitude however, was a slight case of Stockholm syndrome. It was barely noticeable, but Slade could see the slight hint of fear in the boy's eyes when he would leave him for some reason. He had also grown a small hatred towards Wintergreen, due to the fact the he just _wasn't_ Slade. He seemed to idolize the man, which truthfully nobody really minded. The illness could easily be used to Slade's advantage, just as long as it stayed a small dose of the syndrome and didn't get uncontrollable or causes Dick's mind much damage.

Yes, in retrospect his condition may have gotten worse but it was definitely a helpful thing to have. Dick paid attention during practically everything, like right now for instance. Although Slade was sure the boy despised any lessons having to do with robotics his big blue eyes were glued to his work.

Slade smiled widely under his mask. It was so much easier to teaching a willing and obedient person… but he did notice that the depression had dampened Dick's mood lately. Which was to be expected of course, but this… this was unlike any other cases of depression Slade had seen.

For instance, both Slade and Wintergreen had taken notice to the fact that he no longer referred to himself Robin. Although Slade was perfectly fine with ditching the name it made him worry a little. It seemed as though the boy was trying to run from his problems, and this was not something Slade would accept.

But there was no point in bringing the subject up now, not when the poor kid had been doing so well lately…

A beeping noise interrupted both Slade's thought and Robin's concentration as both turned towards the main computer. Slade moved quickly towards the flashing screen to see where the transmission was coming from and used his body to block Dick's view of the computer. Just as he suspected…

"Dick, you're done for the day. Take that with you to your room and work on it there. I'll have Wintergreen bring you dinner in about an hour." From the corner of his eye the mercenary could see the slight hesitation in Dick's movements, but he quickly picked up his work and made his way down the hall.

When he was sure the boy was gone, Sade answered the transmission while sitting down in his big metal chair.

"How may I help you, Batman?" His voice was cold as he said these words, just barely containing his anger.

"Where is he?" Batman, not wanting to waste any time with small talk asked the mercenary in a raspy Batman-like voice.

"Safe and sound, I assure you. I wouldn't want my apprentice to be any less now would I?" He made sure to refer to Dick as 'apprentice' knowing that it only made the Bat's anger level rise.

"He's not your apprentice, he's a hostage." The coldness in the man's eyes told the assassin that this is what he had strongly believed.

"Yes well, everyone is entitled to their own opinion, I suppose. Now, why was it that you called?"

"That chip you had him steal a few weeks ago, it's worth nothing. You might as well through it away." The lie was an obvious one, and glimpse of the real reason the call had been made shone brightly underneath.

The Bat, of course, was calling to ensure that Dick had not been punished for any mistakes made while on the mission.

"Again, Batman, I assure you the boy is fine. Now it has been nice speaking with you, but I really must be going now…" Just as he was about to cut the transmission he heard bare feet padding across the floor, and then abruptly stopping.

Judging by the look on the Dark Knight's face, the noise was not coming from Wintergreen.

"Richard…" The roughness had completely left Batman's voice, only to be replaced with sadness. No doubt he had a clear view of the bloodied bandage on the boy's hand, and the many scratches and scars that ran up and down his arms.

For a brief moment, Slade's cruel side wished that the boy had no shirt on, instead of just rolled up sleeves. He could only imagine the look on Wayne's face if he saw the burnt 'S' that branded the boy's chest…

"Dick, what are you doing?" Slade turned towards the boy in question. Dick pulled his eyes away from the screen and looked up as Slade, then down at the table he had been working at.

"I… I forgot the screwdriver. I just came back to get it…" He reached for the object and picked it up carefully before looking back up at Slade.

He wasn't sure if the man would be angry with him or not, after all, it was an honest mistake right?

"Very well," Slade said carefully, as not to scare the boy too much "You may go then." Dick nodded slightly, sneaking a quick glance at the screen. Slade barely took notice to his slightly sagged shoulders before he made his way down the hallway once again.

Turning back towards the screen, Slade was just about to taunt the Bat a little more but found the screen to be black.

The Bat had hung up.

* * *

**Sooooo thoughts? I really do not find any joy in reading this chapter, but maybe that's because I've read it over so many times already. I hope you guys have a different opinion on this chapter. If not, I'm sorry! **

**Oh and, I just wanted to warn you guys that it might take an extra day or two to get the next chapter out. I am trying to make a neat and organized plan for how this story will go, and I also wanted to make a cover for this story. The current cover picture is not mine and I don't even know who owns it. If somebody would like to make a cover or some fan art I would definitely love to see it! It would probably be better than anything I could draw anyways. **


	8. Master Plans and Search Missions

**Anyone notice anything different about this story? Hmm? HMMMMM? I FINALLY MADE A COVER! =D Aren't you guys proud?! You can get a better look at it on my DeviantArt account, which is DreamsAboutReality. You will also be happy to know that after I upload this chapter I will be working on another piece of artwork that I absolutely ADORE! It's a RobStar piece. ;) ;) **

**So I'm guessing you guys didn't really like the last chapter… considering I got half the reviews I normally get. But I'm not complaining, as long as I get ONE review… **

**ida4444: I am so glad you asked this question, because it reveals a MAJOR flaw I would've TOTALLY missed. THANK YOU! So, I pretty much made it my goal in this chapter to answer your question. **

**Dreams2Paper11: Awwww thanks! I'm really good at writing angst, and that's pretty much all the last chapter was. **

**Sadie Aurora Night: YESHHHH FANART! No rush though… and yeah, I don't get why we can't have phones at school. Oh well, it's pretty easy to not get caught using it anyways. **

**READ!**

* * *

When Wintergreen brought Dick dinner almost an hour later, he found the boy hiding under the bed.

He scoffed lightly at this. What had Slade done to the poor boy this time? The old butler set down his tray on the neatly made bed, and stopped for a minute to listen. After a moment, he could make out the soft whimpers of a crying boy.

When Wintergreen looked under the bed he first saw nothing, but then a slight movement occurred under the bed and two bright blue eyes were looking up at him.

"Go away" Dick whispered quietly before rolling over to face away from the man. Deciding that he would get no where with the boy anyways, Wintergreen stood and made his way towards the door.

"You better eat that food before it gets cold. I'll be back in an hour to pick up the tray."

Once Wintergreen left Dick crawled out from his hiding spot and picked up the tray. Leaning against the wall, he examined the food on the tray. His dinner consisted of a fancy looking sandwich, some fruit, and a glass of water. But the food wasn't what he was searching the plate for...  
_  
There._

Sitting just barely in sight, was a small white pill. The pill was his kryptonite, but it was also his secret weapon.

He tried to tell himself he wasn't addicted to the damn things, but who was he kidding? The thing made him feel great. It was amazing how something so small could wash away all his stress and sadness in thirty minutes.

He took the pill then, swallowing it without any water. It scratched in his throat a little, but that was okay. He was starting to like, even _enjoy_, the pain sometimes. It was the only thing that could make all those nasty feelings go away.

Well, that and the pill of course.

When Wintergreen came back an hour later he didn't see Dick, because the boy was taking a shower. Those helped too. He could practically _feel _the steaming heat wash away all his fears. And plus, if he turned it up high enough it would burn a little.

He liked that.

When he crawled into bed, Dick prayed to every god he had ever learned about that he wouldn't have dreams.

Apparently nobody was looking out for him that night.

* * *

In the dream, Bruce was on the screen in the main room again. He had called in the middle of a sparring match between Slade and Dick, and this time the mercenary let him stay for the call.

The first few seconds, no one said anything. Bruce glared at Slade, and Slade glared back. But Dick, Dick just watched it all play out.

"May I help you?" Slade asked in a taunting voice, leaning forward in his chair just slightly.

"I called to speak with Dick." He stole a quick glance at the boy, who was panting heavily and sweating from head to toe due to the vigorous training.

Dick thought for sure Slade would say no, but instead he made a gustier with his hand. It was almost like he was saying, 'He's all yours'.

But he wasn't. Not in the least bit.

"Dick... I just wanted to tell you that... it's okay if... if you give in. I know you're still fighting, for the Titans, for me... for yourself." He stopped for a moment, letting the words sink in as he took in another breath of air, "Don't... don't feel like you can't... I'll still... still love you if you do. Just... just please, do what's best for you, Dick. Okay?"

Silence filled the atmosphere again, making everyone feel as though they were carrying the world on their backs. Dick swallowed and nodded his head quickly a few times.

He wanted to speak, he really did. He wanted to tell Bruce that he wouldn't give in, that he wouldn't break. He wanted to tell him that he missed him, and he loved him too. He wanted to tell him that leaving Gotham that night was a huge mistake. He wanted to tell him he was sorry.

But he couldn't. He just… couldn't.

"That's very touching, coming from you." Slade's voice sliced through the quiet, suppressed anger was dripping from his every word.

Bruce just nodded, and glanced at his son once more before the screen turned black.

* * *

Dick jolted awake, quickly scanning the room for anything that was out of place. He sat up and peeled the covers from his sweaty body. The alarm clock read 1:27, so he had been asleep for most of the night.

He wanted to walk around, to leave this room and-

No. He looked down at his bandaged hand and reminded himself of what had happened the last time. He would just have to settle for a hot shower then, to get all the sweat off his body.

When Dick lay back down in bed a little while later, his intentions were to sleep. But his thoughts were racing around much too fast.

His head was pounding to a mind numbingly fast beat. Dick could barely manage to catch one of the thoughts and hold on to it for enough time to focus on it.

The thought, was of course, about his dream. _That _ Bruce had said he would be forgiving, that he would always love Dick no matter what. But what about the _real _Bruce? No, it didn't matter if he would hate Dick for giving in. He wasn't going to give in. Not now, and not ever.

The escape plan was already forming in his mind.

* * *

"Dick..." Bruce mumbled the words quietly, but the Batcave was so quiet it sounded as if he had screamed the name.

Images of his son filled his mind, sticking there as if duct taped down.

Dick had looked... broken. His eyes were horribly faded, but still remained a beautiful blue. His skin was so pale... and his hand… it didn't even look like a hand anymore…

That… that…_monster_. Bruce glared at the computer screen, remembering the man who had caused all of this to happen. That man... Slade... he was a dead man. Forget morals, a man that cruel didn't deserve to live, he didn't deserve _anything_.

Bruce brought up the recording he had taken of the whole conversation, and starred at the screen. The high quality camera made everything visible and the picture was clear as crystal.

He starred at the tape as it played over and over again, going into detective mode and searching through the recording for any clues at a professional's speed.

He went through the mental checklist he always used when scanning a crime scene for anything suspicious. But this time it was different, this wasn't just any crime. This was _personal_.

Bruce wasn't exactly sure what was going on with his son, but when he saw the surveillance tape from Wayne Enterprises in Jump City, he knew something was up. At first he was angry at the Titans for ever letting something like this -whatever _this _was- happen. After watching the tape a few hundred times he came to the conclusion that something was definitely going on. The Titans, he could tell from the old tape, were even more clueless than he was. So, eventually he decided getting himself involved through them would be useless.

No, he had to take care of this _his_way. Trying to work with a bunch of teenage superheroes with barely any experience would just be disastrous.

It had taken ages to sort through any information on Deathstroke, mainly because it was so hard to find any. There was nothing but a few facts and pictures at the Watchtower, and he had never made an appearance in Gotham before, so Bruce never had any reason to keep track of the man.

Luckily though, Bruce had enough detective skills to take that information and use it with any the Titans had (Hacking their system had been _so_easy, Bruce felt insulted it wasn't any better). To get enough information on the man to understand who he was and how he operated.

Bruce sighed heavily and glanced at the clock. 1:27. No doubt Alfred and Jason were in bed by now. And Bruce really needed to go out on patrol…

Sighing again, Bruce pulled on his cowl and made his way towards the Batmobile.

_Don't worry Dick _he thought,

_I'll never give up._

* * *

**DON'T KILL ME! Okay so a couple things I need to talk about… **

**1) YES, I am well aware I told you that I would never follow any character that WASN'T Slade or Robin, but ida4444 made a really good point in a review that I HAD to address, therefore I needed a little scene with Batman. **

**2) I'm not sure if I will ever have another scene with Batman that DIDN'T include Dick or Slade, but I might need to in later chapters. **

**3) This chapter was a little shorter, and I apologize for that, but I felt like these were very good stopping points, and I didn't want the story to drag on about stupid things so that this was as long as my other chapters. **

**4) Yes, I did mention Jason. Although I do really like him, I don't think he will appear much in this story. He will probably be around a lot more in the sequel though… *HINT HINT* **


	9. Old Friends

**Yes guys, I know the past couple chapters have been kind of bad. And by bad, I mean boring and totally depressing. Well this chapter is different! If I don't make it clear enough in the chapter, this takes place about a week after the last one, so yeah. Oh and, there is some minor cussing. Only minor though, if you could handle the violence in other chapters you can handle this. **

**ida4444: Don't be sorry! I am really glad that you pointed this out, because the ending would be really confusing if I hadn't cleared that up sooner. Yeah, the last chapter was boring. If it somehow kept you entertained then you'll REALLY love this chapter…**

**Dreams2Paper11: Yes, there will be a sequel. And judging by the types of story you write I think you will like it. **

**READ!**

* * *

"Don't move, three down the hall to your left." Slade spoke calmly through the communicator in Dick's ear. He climbed into the air vent above him and smiled- yes, he actually smiled. He was stealing, and that was wrong but… it was nice to finally move his limbs again. After the weeks of medicine and pleasure from pain, he was finally back to normal. Well, as normal as he could be.

When the men were right under him he dropped from the vent. He hit a guard across the head with his half-extended bow staff, quickly knocking the man out. The other two soon followed suit, with blood flowing freely from their wounds.

And there it was. Dick's smile grew wider as he felt the emotion he hadn't felt in so long. That feeling of pure confidence when going into a fight he knew he would win, or just after coming out of a fight he'd won. It was something he had experienced on a daily basis as a Titan, but had never felt much in the past months.

Dick's feet carried him down the hall, following Slade's directions automatically while his mind thought of other things.

For once, he actually didn't mind have the com-link with Slade. He almost always had it when on missions, but it had never been so useful.

This mission was not like the others he had been on. Rather than the normal ones where he stole from a building or major company, he was in a seemingly abandoned warehouse. His mission, to steal some valuable information from a crime lord satisfied his taste for excitement much easier than other times. And sometimes, when he let his mind wander far enough, he was Robin again, attempting to stop the thug rather than steal from him.

"Be careful, you're getting closer to the main room. There'll be more guards in these halls."

He nodded quickly and kept close to the walls. When he heard the sound of footsteps coming his way he had to restrain himself from smiling.

It was just too easy.

Four men this time, slightly more muscular- with bigger guns too. It didn't lower his confidence even a sliver though.

At this point, hardly anything could.

Kick, punch, flip, dodge, kick, punch, upper cut, duck. That's how it went, move by move; taking down each man until they were all laying on the ground groaning with their eyes squeezed shut.

"Down the hall, to your left. Big double doors. The final confrontation, there will be about twenty men in there all with weapons I'm sure. Knock twice, wait then knock again. They should let you in." Slade spoke as Dick made his way down the hall towards the heavy metal doors.

Doing as instructed, he knocked twice. Then a third time. With his bow staff in one hand, and flash bangs in the other he waited, ready to pounce.

When the door opened, Dick didn't even look at the person as he threw the flash bangs and a few smoke pellets.

He ran into the room quickly, using the smoke as a shield as he quickly took cover behind some boxes.

When the smoke cleared, he could see about fifteen men with bulging muscles covered in tattoos.

He made quick work, not wanting to waste any time. Dick's staff swung viciously through the air, hitting its target almost every time as he twirled the metal rod between his fingers.

The men were down soon enough and Dick made his way towards the computer. He knew that Slade probably didn't even need this information- that he just wanted a reason for Dick to go on another mission, but Dick didn't mind. It was actually kind of…fun.

"Behind you."

He spun around just in time to dodge a vicious blow that had been aimed straight for his head. Jumping to his feet, Dick took a closer look at his attacker.

It was a girl, she had long black hair and Mediterranean features. She looked to be in her twenties, and wore a black skin tight jumpsuit.

"Who are you?" Dick asked the girl. He didn't expect her to answer, yes he had asked her the question, but he wanted Slade's answer.

"Mob boss' daughter. Trained assassin." Slade replied as Dick dodged another punch and delivered one of his own, which was efficiently blocked by the girl.

"I am surprised you do not recognize me, little bird. But I supposed it has been a few years since we last saw each other."

A puzzled look made its way onto Dick's face as they continued fighting.

"A name would be more helpful," The girl laughed at him and shook her head. That laugh…

Suddenly it hit him. The accent, the clothes, the laugh, the fighting…

"Talia Al Ghul, it has been awhile hasn't it? Where's your dad?" Dick tried not to show how much seeing her here scared him, but the small smirk on her face showed she knew SOMETHING.

"I believe his is off fighting the detective."

Shit.

He ran. He ran so fast that he almost forgot to get the information from the computer.

"You KNEW!" he hissed into the com-link as he rushed down the hall.

"That Ra's would be there? Yes, I knew. But the Bat was only a possibility. I would hurry, if I were you. The Bat is probably leaving soon as well." Dick groaned in frustration as he rounded the corner and stopped abruptly.

Footsteps.

They were soft ones, definitely not the clumsy muscular guards. They sounded soft and quick, the person was TRAINED to walk quietly.

"Aw man Bats! Did you see the look on that guy's face when I-" the two people rounded the corner.

The smaller one, the one that had been talking, was wearing a modern looking Robin outfit. The second, was Batman.

Batman. Bruce.

He ran.

"Hey!" The fake Robin yelled, and Dick could hear the footsteps coming after him.

"Dick!"

He stopped running. They were in a huge open room now, it was probably used for storage due to all the crates and boxes stacked in rows.

Slade was right, it was a final confrontation.

"Dick, stop!" Batman yelled, but he didn't listen. He wove his way through the crates, trying to find the exit. Slade wasn't talking to him anymore, the bastard was probably laughing away right now. Watching the whole thing through a stupid security camera.

"Batman, who is that guy. And why do keep calling him DICK?" Robin asked as he made his way through the boxes as well.

Dick's harsh laugh pierced the cold air. "Come on Bruce, you let the kid wear the mask and cape without even telling him who wore it before him?"

Slade chuckled in his ear, and somehow the laugh gave him confidence.

"Bruce, how does he know your name? What is he TALKING about?" Robin asked again.

Dick began climbing a bigger pile of crates. Once he made his way to the top, he could see most of the room. Including the corner Batman and Robin were in about twenty yards away.

"Tell him, Bruce. Tell him all about how I tried so hard. Tell him all about how I was never good enough. See if he still wants to be your partner after THAT."

They stared up at him, Bruce with a look of regret and hurt on his face, Robin with a look of confusion on his.

"Dick..." Bruce managed to say weakly. The name echoed through the room, cascading off the ceiling and bouncing off the walls.

"You don't want to tell him? Fine, I will. Listen kid, I was Robin years ago. Parents got killed in the circus, watched them die. Sad stuff. Bruce here took me in. Soon enough I found out about Batman, and demanded to be his partner." He let out a short, harsh laugh "What a mistake that was! Anyways, one day I just suddenly wasn't good enough anymore. He wanted me to quit, and when I wouldn't he fired me. So I moved here, all the way across the country where HE couldn't tell me what to do. Guess I could never really get out of the Bat's shadow huh?"

Dick leapt down from his perch with the grace of an acrobat, landing perfectly on his feet in front of the two. He smirked at the dumbfounded looks on their faces.

"No Dick, it wasn't because you weren't good enough! I didn't want you to get hurt anymore! I just-"

"Safe your excuses for someone who will listen, Bruce. Because I sure as hell won't." Dick interrupted before turning towards the nearest exit and walking out.

* * *

It took awhile, but once he finally got back to the Haunt Wintergreen was waiting for him.

"I only have a few minor scratches and bruises, Wintergreen. They can heal on their own. I forgot to take that medicine this morning though, you don't happen to have any do you?"

The butler nodded and pulled one of the small white pills from his pocket. Dick took the pill quickly, before Wintergreen had anytime to question him. He had been lying, of course. He had taken the pill that morning at breakfast. But after the mission he had just gone on... he needed the pill.

"Thanks, where is Slade?" he asked the man, who was now smiling happily.

"He has retired to his room for the night to get some sleep, I believe. He seemed very happy when he left though. Good job tonight, by the way. You might want to go get some rest now, Slade is going to let you sleep in a few hours since it's already so late, but you have training tomorrow afternoon."

Dick nodded and headed off towards his room. He felt great, the pill was starting to kick in, Slade was happy, and nobody suspected ANYTHING.

His plan was going perfectly.

* * *

**If you guys didn't like this chapter then you will hate this story. Why are you still here? Go away. Haha just kidding (Or am I?) I'll try to get the next chapter out soon!OH AND GUESS WHAT I AM GOING TO BE FOR HALLOWEEN?! Yep, I'm going to be Robin. :) And my friend will be Batman, and the other will be the Batmobile. Yeah... we're nerds... I spent my Friday night making a car out of cardboard...  
**


	10. Phase One

**Hey guys! So, here is the next chapter of Ignoring The Truth! Just wanted to say thanks for all the support you guys have given me, this story is by far the longest and most popular I have written in my many years on FanFiction. :) **

**Oh, and guess what?! I found out my town has a comic book store! Yep, that's right, I got some Teen Titans, Young Justice, Robin, and Nightwing comics. Can you tell who my favorite superhero is? (And the Teen Titan ones even have Slade/Deathstroke in them!) I think I'm having a heart attack from all the awesomeness...  
**

**Dreams2Paper11: Ugh, I know. As I have said before, I do not like OC's. They just tend to get carried away and are way to perfect and predictable. Oh and, update Twisted Hearts soon! I was reading through it the other day, and it's really good! You know a story is good when you can read it over and over again and still get that amazing filling in your gut. :)  
**

**ida4444: I knew you would like this chapter! I was looking at the past couple chapters and thought, 'Wow, no wonder everyone's reviews have seemed kind of defleated, these chapters are boring!'. Your reviews always help me work out the problems I occur writing this story, it's a HUGE help and I thank you for that!  
**

**Sadie Aurora Night: The plan is talked about more in this chapter, and so is the new Robin. I just decided to stick with the DC Comic's second Robin who is Jason Todd. You might want to look him up on Wikipedia, because he is AWESOME. He is a total badass, and is almost as awesome as Dick. Almost...  
**

**LanaLegolas: Haha I will post pictures of the Batmobile on my DeviantArt account (DreamsAboutReality on ) when it's finished.**

* * *

He was addicted.

Yes, Dick had FIANLLY admitted to himself how much he loved those stupid pills. But he couldn't help it. They just made him fell so damn _good_.

At breakfast the next morning- well, it was more like brunch because he _had_ slept until 10:30 - he ate alone. Slade wasn't there for some reason, and Wintergreen only came into the dining room to give Dick his plate of food.

The silence created by being alone scared Dick. He didn't like the silence anymore... It made him feel in danger and insecure.

Eventually, he gave up on sitting quietly and took his plate of food towards the kitchen. Wintergreen was sitting at a smaller table off to the side, munching on a bagel and reading the newspaper.

"Can I sit with you?" He asked the old man, who only nodded as he took a large bite out of his apple.

Dick sat down in the rickety wooden chair across from Wintergreen and stared at the man for a moment. After a few second he decided this silence was actually _worse_, because now it was just uncomfortable silence instead of silence simply because there was nobody to talk to.

Wintergreen lay the newspaper down on the table and made his way towards the sink. As he began washing dishes and cleaning up after breakfast, Dick snuck a look at the cover of the newspaper,

It read, _Bruce Wayne Adopts New Ward After Declaring The First Missing _

Just looking at the headline made Dick want to burst out into a fit of anger and a fit of tears all at once. He was mad, mostly because, well… were they really giving up on him? Surely that hadn't fallen too far for his acting last night. But he was also happy because this... this was a sign that Bruce was managing to move on.

Bruce had fallen right into the plan. Dick couldn't believe it, really. Bruce had never been a gullible person, and Dick had never been a good actor. Had he learned how to act during his time here? When he acted asleep, acted like he wasn't hurt or tired or upset?

"Can I read this?" He asked, picking up the wrinkly newspaper to show what he meant by 'this'.

"I suppose" Wintergreen answered without even turning his head to look at whatever Dick was talking about. It didn't matter, simply because he knew _exactly_ what Dick was talking about. Slade had told Wintergreen to read the week old newspaper this morning, the mercenary knowing there was a chance that Dick would read it.

As he read the article, the wetness in his eyes became more noticeable.

_This past Saturday, Bruce Wayne officially announced Richard John Grayson as a missing person. _

"_We have all been searching for five months now, and although we haven't given up our efforts have not helped the cause in any significant way." GCPD's Jim Gordon reports after the public announcement. _

_It had also been reported by inside sources that Wayne had officially adopted Jason Peter Todd, a boy who lived on the streets for most of his young life, until he was discovered two months ago. _

"_Bruce is a very kind person, and although this boy is very troubled Bruce will be putting much of his time into helping this boy and finding his older son." A close friend of the family tells us, "We don't believe Dick was kidnapped for ransom, we believe that whoever kidnapped him had no intention of selling the boy for ransom." _

_Read more of this story on page 4 _

He didn't really know how to react.

Wintergreen was watching him now, keeping a close eye in case Dick's emotions started going haywire again. But the teen just set the paper down calmly and began eating his breakfast again.

This Jason kid, he was the new Robin. Dick wondered how they had met. Did this kid know about Dick at all? He didn't seem to know the history of Robin, so did he never realize he wasn't the only child to live with Bruce? Surely Alfred would have told him about Dick, but what if... what if Alfred was too devastated, to upset, to even _mention _his name?

What if they really _had _lost hope in him?

No, that was ridiculous. And besides, it didn't matter if they had hope or not. His plan was perfect, and it didn't even involve anyone but himself, Slade, and Wintergreen.

"I'm going to go sit on the roof. Is that okay with you?" Dick stood and took his dishes to the sink, before grabbing the jacket in Wintergreen's outstretched hand,

"You know the rules. Be back in an hour." Dick nodded his head in agreement. He did know the rules, they were simple enough. Don't leave the roof, and be back when he was told to be back.

The roof was his favorite spot he had discovered since being here. He didn't get to go outside often, so the fresh air and sun beating down on his face was a relaxing feeling. It was so quiet up here... But not the eerie kind like inside the Haunt. The silence inside was deathly, like the silence in a horror movie, making you think something bad was about to happen. Outside... it was so much calmer. The atmosphere was friendlier. He didn't feel like an anaconda was about to leap at him and crush his bones.

He just sat on the edge of the building for a few minutes, looking out over the bay, then back towards the city. He could see the outline of Titans Tower, but he looked away quickly. He hadn't come up here to sulk over his friends.

No, he came here to work.

Dick pulled the small screwdriver from his pocket and made his way towards the door that was built into the floor. He had swiped the screwdriver while at his last robotics lesson with Slade- and this was the third one. He had kept going back and getting a different one, because the one he had previously taken wasn't the right size.

He was sure about this one though, because he had studied the damn screws for hours. His plan, which included many complicated phases, started off first with getting the door to the roof loose so he could easily break through it, it was the most simple phase, and yet it was still difficult and took time.

Most of the time, the door was locked. But on occasion Wintergreen would unlock it so Dick could spend some time up here.

Dick sighed happily upon finding out that the screwdriver fit. He began unscrewing the screws, and it didn't end up taking him very long. He only needed to unscrew them a little, so that when he busted through the door in the middle of the night it would take less time and make less noise.

When he was finished, Dick moved back to his spot on the corner of the roof smiling happily to himself.

His plan was perfect. It consisted of five phases, and then the final escape. Phase one, was to loosen the screws on the door. Yes, the plan would take a while but it would be worth it. The plan was so complex that Dick himself could barely remember it, so how could Slade figure it out? Especially with the depression that had consumed the teen lately, the man had little to no reason for suspicion. But just in case he had any, the remaining stages involved doing things that would make the man even more suspicious.

Dick smirked to himself. Sitting here, with the feeling of success and the wind blowing his hair across his eyes… it was a great feeling.

He missed this feeling… the confidence, the success, and the lack of difficulty.

He stood from his spot on the edge and moved back towards the door. Climbing through the hatch he made his way back to his room. It was almost noon, but because of his late lunch Dick doubted that he would eat lunch today.

He made his way back to his room and ran a hot shower. Stepping under the hot spray of water, Dick smiled again. Life wasn't good, but it was better than it had been in weeks.

Getting out of the shower and wrapping a towel around his waist, Dick made his way towards the foggy mirror and ran his hand across the glass, clearing it off enough to see his face.

The bags under his eyes had almost disappeared, and the color had finally come back to his bright blue eyes.

Life wasn't good, but it was getting better.

* * *

Dick walked into the training room five minutes before 2:00 to see Slade waiting for him. The man pulled something off of the nearby bench and held it out for his apprentice to take.

It was a blindfold. Looking up at Slade for conformation, Robin slowly lifted it to his eyes and tied it around his head.

"You've become too dependent on your eyes when you fight. Try to use your other senses to block my attacks." Dick nodded and the attacks began raining down on him.

A punch to the stomach, a swing with a bow staff to the face, Dick was _not _enjoying this as much as he had anticipated. He was barely stumbling through this… _literally, _because Slade had just tripped him.

"Be patient. Listen closely for my breathing, footsteps, the staff slicing through the air…" Slade lectured him from about five feet to his left.

Patience, he could do that. Just be… calm. He listened carefully, searching for any sounds in the room.

He could hear the hum of the air conditioner, the distant sound of gears turning, and footsteps… two metal clad feet that were rushing towards him.

Dick flipped out of the way just barely avoiding the harsh blow the staff would've delivered to his back.

"Good, you're getting better." Slade praised him, and Dick actually found himself smiling. _Smiling?! _He wasn't supposed to be smiling because of Slade's praise; he was supposed to be smiling because of Slade's _demise. _

He shook it off his face before Slade could even glance and got into a fighting position again.

* * *

Later that night as Dick was moving his sore limbs towards his bed, he thought back to the earlier training session with Slade. He had _smiled. _Thinking back to the moment when he got praise, the moment that his chest swelled with pride, it made a question creep into his thoughts.

He was trying to escape, but did he really want to?

**So what did you guys think? If you thought this phase was kind of boring, then rest assured the next phases are much more exciting. Now, review you little Robin lovers! **


	11. Phase Two

**Wow, what a quick update. You guys should be so proud. **

**Dreams2Paper11: I haven't worked on that, but it's nice to know that my writing has actually improved, so thanks! :) And yes, I know how you feel about those kinds of chapters. I have had MAJOR writers block before (Not so much with this story, though).  
**

**ida4444: Your reviews definitely help, and yes there will be an awesome twist in Dick's plan. Don't you worry, this chapter is kind of fast past. Definitely faster than the last, anyways.  
**

**jordylilly777: Awww thanks! I always try!  
**

**Sadie Aurora Night: Your review is the inspiration that got me to finish this chapter so quickly, so I thank you for that! I was kind of going for the same idea your story is going for, and the same thing you mentioned in your review. So it's nice to know I'm achieving that!**

* * *

It was time. Time for the second stage.

Dick sighed deeply as he awoke the next morning. The second stage was the worst. It was so stupid, so ridiculous. But that's why he had to do it. He had to intentionally mess up, intentionally get himself in trouble. Get himself punished, beaten. Beaten badly.

It was all part of the plan, but what if he went too far? What if Slade killed him? No, he wouldn't ever go that far. By the time the sun set tonight Dick would have a few more scars though, that was certain in Dick's mind.

It was stupid. It was completely, utterly idiotic. So idiotic that if Slade found out about, he might actually let Dick free, thinking that the kid was too stupid to be his apprentice.

Dick smiled at the thought. If his escape planned failed, he could always try that.

Breakfast was quiet, which for once Dick appreciated. He was so nervous that he didn't even want to talk, he was too afraid that he would accidentally spilled the entire plan. Lay it out in front of Slade in an almost mocking way, as if to say 'Here is my plan, try and stop me!'

So Dick stayed quiet for the most part, blaming his lack of words on a lack of sleep. Saying he had had a nightmare the night before.

He waited patiently for the right time to bring it up. He had picked out how he would get himself into trouble when he was forming the plan, knowing instantly what would work perfectly.

"Slade," Dick huffed in between gasps for breath. He sat down on the cool metal bench and took a big sip of water from the bottle Slade handed him. They had been training, and Slade had decided Dick needed a five minute break. Perfect, just perfect. Almost too perfect.

"Yes?" The man was on the other side of the room, putting the two bow staffs in their rightful place in the weapons closet.

"Last night, after dinner, I was walking back to my room and I guess I just got lost in thought," He stopped to take another drink of water before continuing, "I got lost and kept walking. I thought I found my room, but it wasn't my room." Another swig from the water bottle, "It was a teenage boy's though… was it… was it your son's? Does he… does he still live here?" Dick emptied the contents of the bottle into his mouth, missing the way Slade's muscles tensed just slightly.

Dick's hands were shaking severely, like an old man's. Why was he so nervous?! The answer was simple really, he knew what was coming.

"It was my son's room. How did you know I had children?" Slade turned to stare at him accusingly, his single grey eye falling on Dick's two bright blue ones.

"Wintergreen told me one time… I think he said it on accident. He said that I… that I reminded him of your son. Does he still live here?" Dick repeated his earlier question, knowing that it hadn't been answered intentionally. He had to pester the man, get him annoyed. It would be easier to get into trouble that way.

"He does not." Slade answered through _very_ clenched teeth. The boy was starting to get on his nerves, his very _sensitive_nerves.

"Where does he live?" Dick pestered with an even worse question. Knowing Slade and knowing who the man was he had no doubt that the boy had probably run away.

"He doesn't live anywhere." Slade turned back towards the closet again, pretending to look for something so the teen would shut up.

"He ran away, didn't he? He probably hated yo-" Slade was at his throat faster than Dick could finish the short word.

"He is dead. Do you care to learn more?" The mercenary growled in a dangerously low tone, his large hands stilled wrapped around his apprentice's throat.

He slowly let go, thinking that he had finally shut the boy up.

"Did you kill him?" The whisper was so quiet, so timid that the words barely made it too the older man's ears.

"That is enough, apprentice. We need to begin training, your five minutes is up." Slade growled as he walked back towards the closet, making sure he used the word apprentice instead of the boy's name.

Dick slowly stood from the bench on wobbly legs. He was close… so close. Just a little more push and he would be there…

Walking over to the man he had been taunting, he took the staff from the man's extended hand. They sparred for a few minutes, attacking and dodging with the sharp sticks of metal. He could tell that Slade was furious; the man's staff had collided with Dick's many times in a loud screech of contact.

It was time. Dick glanced anxiously at Slade, hoping that it would all be over quick. He began to turn, intending to do a roundhouse kick he knew would never be finished.

It was a stupid move, a stupid, stupid, move. Slade's bow staff swung sharply towards the square of Dick's back, making the boy cry out in pain.

His movements seemed to slow down a thousand times, and he fell to the floor, collapsing on his knees.

Slade, who was still in the heat of the moment, moved his staff quickly to rest under the boy's chin. In one swift movement, he could easily shatter the child's vocal cords.

"Pathetic," His venom filled voice slat the words at the cowering boy. "As my apprentice, I expect you to do things right, and to succeed. Does it look like you have succeeded?"

Dick only whimpered in response and after a few more seconds of silence the cold metal pressed harder onto his throat.

"ANSWER me, apprentice." The mercenary growled in a low voice, for the second time that day.

"N-no" Dick managed to make all the fear and worry he felt reflect through the word. He had purposefully left off the title he knew Slade wanted to be called. He had to make the situation worse. A bruised spinal cord wasn't enough for a few days stuck in bed...

"No WHAT?" Again, he could feel the metal staff pressing even father into his throat.

"N-no, Ma-master." Dick's eyes were shut tight as a sign of fear, hoping that the man was in a bad enough mood for it to get on his nerves.

The pressure on his neck was suddenly released as Slade pulled away from him. Dick's shoulders sagged as the man turned towards Dick's fallen staff and made his way back to the closet with it. It wasn't enough... he would have to do _more_...

"Did you ever beat _him_?"

The room became deathly quiet.

He had crossed the line, he knew it. He knew it the minute that bow staff dropped from Slade's hand and clattered to the floor. He knew it the minute Slade's hand was wrapped around his throat. He knew it the minute Slade had him pinned against the wall.

He _knew_.

"You have just caused yourself a lot of pain, young man." Slade whispered the menacing words, they were barely above a whisper, and they were barely heard.

Dick was dropped to the floor suddenly and stayed lying where he was, knowing he was not supposed to get back up.

A harsh and swift quick landed itself of his already bruised back, and another soon followed.

Dick groaned loudly and opened his eyes, only to see a metal clad boot coming towards his face.

He could hear the sickening crack of his nose breaking, it sounded so similar to when his hand had been give the same fate.

The fourth kick was too his left kneecap, which soon after broke into what felt like a million pieces, but was probably only three.

"Slade, stop." Dick was surprised to find the words not coming from him, or Slade, but from Wintergreen. The old man was standing in the doorway, no doubt watching the whole scene play out.

"He disrespected me and my son. He _deserves_the pain that Grant felt when he died. Only Dick will get to live, so that he can feel the pain over and over again." Slade's harsh words came with another kick, this time to his right shoulder, effectively moving it out of place.

A cry could be heard escaping the boy's lips. As Slade pulled back his foot to deliver yet another blow he was stopped by his loyal friend.

"He won't live if you continue with this. I am no doctor and cannot treat bad wounds. He will need to be taken to a hospital. He is coughing up blood, which I assume means he has some kind of internal bleeding." Wintergreen looked down on the broken boy, who was currently wrapping his arms around his upper torso. The sounds of coughing could be heard, and sure enough blood was pouring over his bottom lip and onto the floor.

"He will _not_be taken to a hospital. Consider it part of his punishment. It will take longer for the injuries to heal, however. Call Dr. Planert, he will be able to care for the injuries enough so that they are not life threatening. He is trustworthy enough to keep a secret, especially for a little extra money." From the corner of his eye he could see Wintergreen nod slightly in agreement. The old man's gaze soon fell upon Dick, a look of pain and betrayal in his eyes.

"Should we take him to the infirmary? I believe there is a stretcher we can carry him on..." The man's words drifted off when Slade bent over Dick's broken body and picked him up hurriedly.

Feeling a new wave of pain overcome him, Dick let out an agonizing scream. He could feel Slade's hot breath on him, and then,

"Just imagine, if you were beaten to death. You wouldn't get to live through all the pain. You would drown in it. That is how my _son_ felt when he died. He was drowning, drowning a sea of his own blood."

Slade was right; he _was_ drowning in the pain. His vision contained only red, with occasional spots of black. As Dick drifted off into unconsciousness, he thought only one thing.

_Perfect._

* * *

**So? How was it? Hopefully you guys are really REALLY confused right now, because that's kind of what I was going for. And don't worry, Dick hasn't gone crazy. Yet, at least... *Evil laugh* :) **_  
_


	12. Catching a Fox

**Yes, I know it's been awhile. And I _would _beg for your forgiveness... but I don't feel like it. But I WILL offer you my pathetic excuse for why it's been 38 days since the last update. **

**Okay well, it's almost winter break where I live. YAY and BOO at the same time. Winter break means no school, and Christmas, but it also means FINALS. Oh God, how I hate that word. **

**So, I'm not the type to sit down and study every night, but I am the type to look at my grades and think 'Oh crap, I guess I better start trying in some of these classes huh?'. Now, I am a smart person (I think?) and I don't really NEED to study much, so I've naturally become lazy about doing these kinds of things.  
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**Over the last 38 days this is what I've been doing. Trying to get those B's into A's, trying to get those A's into even HIGHER A's, and all that boring stuff. So don't blame me, blame whoever invented school and finals. AGH there's that word again...  
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**ida4444: Yes, don't worry I'm fine. :) A little stressed out and tired, but for the most part fine.  
**

**Robin's Sister: The Titans probably won't appear in this, but they'll show up in the sequel which WILL be appearing soon.  
**

**Yuna Kimitachi: No, his plan definitely doesn't involve any evilness to it. I wouldn't worry about the boring parts for awhile now though, because the final chapters are coming soon!  
**

**I got a lot more reviews than this, but most of them were motivators and didn't really need any feed back besides: Thanks for the review! Glad you like the story! So yeah..  
**

**READING TIME!**

* * *

"Up. Now." the two words reached out to him through the darkness beneath his eyelids. Darkness... why was it so dark? Dick hated the dark, it had always brought bad things with it, but this darkness... It was a warm thing. It didn't feel bitter or cold, it was... welcoming. He didn't want to leave it. The warmth of it was like a million hugs from his mom. He just wanted to curl up in it, legit swallow him up and...

But the words were pulling at him. Dick could feel his grip on the darkness start to loosen. He let a low moan escape his lips as his body and mind finally submerged from the darkness.

His blue eyes slowly fluttered open to stare up at the light that was blinding him. Slowly he pulled his hand up to block the light as his eyes adjusted to the sudden change in lighting.

Another groan escaped his lips as Dick realized he was lying on his blood stained bed, and the man who had caused his pain was standing at the edge of the mattress.

"Glad to see you're finally awake. How do you feel? You've been asleep for quite awhile." Slade's words had a certain smugness to them, as if the man thought this was _amusing_...

"Hurts..." Dick managed to speak the word as his head rolled to the side. In his new line of vision, he could see Wintergreen standing by the old wooden desk. The old man's cold gaze bore deep into Dick's skull. The man looked almost... disappointed in him. In a sudden and new wave of fear, the teen's head began buzzing with worries. Had they found out about his plan? No, surely not. Slade wouldn't have sounded so amused earlier. He would've been mad. Dick's _other_arm would've been broken.

"Yes, that is to be expected. Wintergreen? Do you suggest a painkiller to help with that?"

The glare that had settled on the elder's face was one of disgust and his head made a barely noticeable shake to the side. But instead of refusing the boy- because it was clear to everyone in the room that he wanted too- he reached out his shaky old hands towards the boy, in them a glass of water and two pills.

The pills- one of the most important parts of his plan- were taken without hesitation. Inside, Dick was immediately sadden that he wasn't able to save one of the two, but instead had to take both because his captors were watching.

Because of his recent injuries, whenever given a painkiller it was usually in the form of two pills to replace the usual one. He had been hiding one of the pills- inside his pillowcase- and Dick had now collected six of the small white miracles. If he was ever going to escape this place, and he _was_, he would need them. After admitting to himself of his obvious addiction to the damn things Dick had included this little part to his plan. Once he got back home, he would test the things- see what made them so addictive and powerful- so he could find a way to stop his need for them.

But the pills weren't his only reason for getting punished. No, he _needed_Wintergreen and Slade mad at him. It was one of the first things Batman had taught him, an angry enemy is an easier enemy to defeat.

Dick could tell that his plan had worked effectively. The old butler barely talked to him, and although Slade seemed more amused about Wintergreen's attitude than angry himself, Dick knew the anger was there.

It was boiling right under the surface, making both of the men vulnerable and distracted.

He rolled over again, facing the blank wall instead of the others in the room. The pain was blinding, and it took all of his energy to just focus on the wall.

Just as he was about to descend into the depths of sleep, a hand grabbed his shoulder and roughly pulled Dick into a sitting position.

"Oh no you don't. You'll have plenty of time to sleep after we get some food into your system." A voice that sounded a lot like Slade's informed him, and Robin reluctantly obeyed. _Besides_, he told himself, _he was much too tired to do anything else_.

The hand pulled a spoon to his slightly parted lips, and Dick soon began eating the soup like he hadn't eaten in a lifetime. But all too soon the food was gone, and there was nothing left to do but sleep.

The dull routine if waking up, eating, and taking medicine was become a boring chore over the next few days. It had almost been two weeks since the beating, and Dick still felt weak. Although his body was healing at a slightly above average rate, whenever he needed to use the bathroom someone had to help him there.

That in itself was demoralizing, but Dick soon learned to get over it and except this new way of life until his body was fully healed.

But one night, as Robin was drifting in and out of sleep, he overheard something that was definitely not meant for his ears.

"When do you expect to leave, sir? The boy wouldn't be well again in two weeks at the soonest. I'm not sure our base in Gotham would have enough medical supplies if he needed them."

Wintergreen's worn voice spoke softly, but also with a stern attitude. It was clear that he was still upset over what Dick had said about this Grant, but why should it matter to him? This confused Dick even more, as he knew that Slade had a closer relationship with the boy than anyone.

"He will do just fine. The healing serum is appearing to work, and with the small doses we've been giving him I don't expect any sudden pain or problems. But I do suspect that whatever medical supplies you might need, you will take with you. We should be able to fit them on the plane, and it shouldn't be a long trip. I only expect us to be in Gotham for a week before we can move on to the next project." Slade's voice could hardly be heard through the thin walls and flipping of papers.

Gotham? Plane? These two words in particular caught the Boy Wonder's interest. If they were really going to Gotham, and for only a week, then surely they wouldn't be sitting around in a hideout would they? Surely Slade had something planned for Robin, and maybe, just maybe, this something could catch Batman's attention.

Batman. If the man really was the World's Best Detective, than a week would be plenty of time for him to figure out what was going on.

But if Robin couldn't even figure it out, could the Bat?

* * *

"Dick, wake up." Wintergreen's voice sliced through the peaceful silence of the room, and as Dick opened his eyes light invaded them.

"Too... Bright..." He mumbled while pulling a hand up to cover his face from the light.

"Yes well, if you think this is bad then you will have a hard time on the plane." Wintergreen chuckled, and soon after Robin heard the familiar clicking sound that meant the old man was opening his medical bag. "You look much better today, and you managed to get quite a lot of sleep last night... I think you will be able to handle the pain with out any medication for today."

Dick suppressed his urge to groan at the mention of no medication. If they really were going on a plane to Gotham, and Wintergreen really _was _packing medical supplies into his bag, then the plan was ruined.

Knowing so much about the Haunt had given Robin a slight advantage when he planned his escape, but now, being in an unfamiliar hideout, his plan was as good as useless.

Apparently Wintergreen had already packed most of his things, because once Dick was up and moving around the room he saw that the dresser was empty and the desk was clear of any papers.

He quickly showered and dressed in a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt, with equally dark sunglasses.

As he sat quietly in the back of a town car, Dick couldn't help but wonder, why Gotham? The city was so big and had so many people; they could be going there for a number of reasons. When he voiced this opinion to Slade, he soon after realized the man hadn't even told him where they _were _going, Dick had obtained the information by eavesdropping.

"How did you-"

"I heard you and Wintergreen talking one night." Dick interrupted the man sitting next to him.

"You'll see when we get there." The man leaned back in his seat and stared out the window, and the rest of the ride was silent.

At the airport, Slade led Dick towards a part of the building reserved for private planes, and they boarded one quickly. The plane was small, but each person on it, only the three and the pilot, had plenty of room to themselves.

It was sunset when Robin finally saw the familiar rooftops, including the Wayne Industries that towered over the surrounding buildings. As the plane landed with a thud Robin made his way up from his chair as Slade and Wintergreen piled their bags into the back of another town car.

The hideout they were at was, coincidentally, close to a hideout that Robin and his mentor had used a few times.

"Go sleep, tomorrow night we'll start the mission." Slade pointed down the hall towards an old wooden door that must've led to Dick's temporary bedroom. The teen wanted to ask about this 'mission' but was quickly herded into the small room.

The next night Wintergreen brought him the apprentice uniform, and Robin unwillingly pulled the black Kevlar over his skin.

Now he and Slade were standing on the rooftop of a bank in the heart of downtown Gotham. Slade, with binoculars in his hand and a black bag at his feet, was being awfully secretive about whatever they were about to do.

Dick figured they were probably going to steal some new prototype, but he didn't really care. He was too busy trying to remember where Bruce tended to patrol at this time of night.

Slade knelt down in front of the black bag and began to unzip it. Robin gasped at the sight inside the bag.

A sniper rifle.

"Wayne Industries, sixteenth floor left window." Slade handed him the binoculars and Robin quickly took them and began counting the floors. When he found the right window, Dick gasped once again and the binoculars fell to the ground in a loud crash.

The man inside the window was Lucius Fox.

* * *

**I am an AWFUL person. I'm so sorry. **

**So the plan is no more, which you'll find out was not as good as what I now have planned. This was another reason it took so long to update, because I just COULDN'T come up with the rest of the plan. I should've asked you guys for help, but then you would've KNOWN the plan and it wouldn't have been any fun...  
**

**But this is BETTER! Trust me, it is.  
**


	13. Quick Decisions

Dick took another few steps away from the edge of the roof, and away from Slade.

"But..." His mind took longer than usual to form a complete thought, "Why would... why would YOU want to kill Fox?" His body was having a hard time functioning, and his knees wobbled as Dick focused on standing.

"I don't care if he is dead. But someone else wants him dead, and it's my job to make him that way." Slade continued pulling large black pieces of metal from the bag at his feet and lay them out in front of him.

Dick recognized the pieces, it was a sniper rifle. A gun Slade had had him assembled and dissemble many times before.

"But... Why?" Dick bent over to pick up the binoculars that had fallen to the ground and peered through them towards the building once again.

Most if the windows were dark, but a few we're lit with late night workers and custodians. Dick could easily make out Lucius Fox, one of the most important men working at Wayne Industries.

And the man who had significantly he, led Batman become who he was now.

"I don't know, and I didn't ask. But I think it's safe to guess that since Wayne has become more and more dependent on him to run the company, a rival businessman might want him out of the picture."

"I won't let you kill him." The roof became deadly silent as Slade paused to look up at his apprentice.

"No, you're going to help me. Put this gun together." He stood and gestured with his hand at the pieces scattered across the roof.

But instead of moving towards the pieces or objecting like he normally would, Dick continued to stare at his feet.

Slade sighed heavily, and put his hands on the teen's shoulders. "Dick, look at me." The boy's head moved upwards a little, so he was now staring at the man's Kevlar covered chest. Slade grabbed his chin and brought it up half an inch so that they were now face to face.

"Someone is going to die tonight, Dick. It's your decision. You can help me kill a single man, or you can standby and watch as I kill four young heroes. Now, which will you choose?"

"I... I don't know..." Dick pulled away and looked at the gun parts on the ground, then to the building where Lucius was, and then back to Slade.

How could he make a decision regarding someone's life like this? He couldn't decide when people would die... it just... it wasn't his decision to make.

But he had to, Slade was making him. Neither the Titans nor Fox deserved to die, for anything! But... the Titans were a bigger help to civilians, although Dick was sure Lucius was a bigger help to Bruce. And not just with his business and being Batman, but also as a friend. Dick knew Bruce didn't have many friends, and if he lost Fox, would he be able to handle himself? With all the stuff that had happened in the last two years?

"I'll... I'll help"

He bent down and began to assemble the gun, just as he had practiced. It wasn't a very complicated gun, just a basic sniper used to hit targets from far away.

As he was putting the gun together, Dick remembered the time when he stood on this same roof, surveying the streets below and-

_Wait. _A memory struck Dick suddenly, and he had to fight to keep his features calm. _When Batman and I would patrol… this roof… we would always come here at the very end of the route. _Dick's eyes grew wide in excitement behind his mask. If Batman had always come here on patrol when Dick was Robin, then surely he would come here with the new Robin as well…?

Dick swiftly turned his head away from Wayne In., towards the town square. A large clock was located high on one of the buildings, and Dick could just barely make out the time.

It was 4:27 in the morning, only three minutes until Batman would be heading this way.

_Three minutes… I just have to distract him for three minutes. _Dick stopped putting the gun together and turned towards Slade quickly, jumping to his feet to face the man.

In one swift motion Dick's fist flew towards the man's masked face, and although it was caught quickly Dick recoiled by kicking out at the man's feet.

The move caused Slade to step backwards, away from the gun and bag that most likely had the controller to the probes, since it wasn't strapped to his wrist.

Slade recovered from the sudden attack quickly, and threw a punch towards Dick's torso. The teen wasn't able to dodge the attack fast enough, and the fist hit his arm in a painful collision.

_Two minutes, just two more minutes. _He became still for a moment, holding his hurt arm with his uninjured one before quickly looking up at Slade.

The man was standing a few feet away, with his hands behind his back, and his single grey eye staring at Dick.

Dick's face settled into a scowl until he moved again, aiming a roundhouse kick at Slade's masked features.

His thin ankle was caught in Slade's hand and the man threw him across the roof.

Dick landed harshly on his side and out of breath. Heavy metal footsteps could be heard, and Dick looked up to see Slade moving towards him.

_One minute, come on Batman. Please don't be running late. _

But to Dick's relief and Slade's dismay the Bat wasn't running late, no in fact, he was doing quite the opposite.

The large black figure landed on the rooftop with a large thud, followed shortly by a small boy clad in red.

"Batman," Slade began in his calm voice, "So glad you could join us." The next minute Slade was running at Dick's former mentor, and the two collided in a large crash of flesh and Kevlar.

Suddenly remembering the controller Dick swung his head around to see the new Robin standing where he originally was, looking confused and unsure of who to attack.

"The bag! Get the bag!" He yelled in the younger boys direction, who saw that the strange boy clad in black and orange was yelling at _him_.

Jason quickly moved towards the bag, listening to the older boy all the while.

"The controller! Get the controller and _leave_!" Rising to his feet, Dick turned towards the fight that was still happening.

Batman was losing, and losing badly. He was being ruthlessly beaten by Slade, who didn't even have a scratch on him. Dick felt a sudden sense of déjà vu at the sight.

He contemplated throwing himself into the fight, but Slade seemed so busy with the fight that he had forgotten about his apprentice and the probes altogether. Throwing himself into the fight could bring Slade to the realization that Robin now had the controller in his hands. Wanting the young hero to stay out of the danger as much as possible, Dick turned towards the boy instead of joining the fight.

"Look kid, I need you to run. Take this back to the Batcave now, alright? Just keep running and don't look back." The words coming from Dick's mouth were frantic, and the boy didn't seem to be any less confused by them.

"But… Batman. I won't leave Batman alone." The boy looked up at Dick, the controller gripped tightly in his hand and the look on his face defiant.

"Don't worry about Batman, I'll take care of him."

"But… how can I trust you? Who _are _you?" The boy still looked just as determined to stay as he was before. Dick was silent for a moment as he was deciding how much to tell the boy. Too much information could only get the boy further into the mess, but not enough information could be even more dangerous.

"I'm… I'm Dick Grayson, okay? The first Robin. Now, you have to _hurry_. Take this to the Batcave and I'll make sure Bruce lives okay?" The boy stared at him for a moment, before nodding and turning away, about to jump to the next rooftop.

"And kid? Don't press that button." Robin nodded once more before shooting his grappling hook and flying off into the sky.

Dick moved quickly to take apart the pieces of the gun that had been put together, dropping each piece off the edge of the high rooftop.

"Bad move, apprentice." Slade's angry tone reminded Dick of the promise he had made to the young Robin, and he spun around to see Slade standing next to the crumpled form of Batman.

He wasn't dead, no, just… beaten. The sight was not pleasant, but not one Dick hadn't seen before either. Looking back at the cruel man who had held him captive for almost five months, Dick's body was working on adrenaline and instincts. And his instincts told him to run.

So he ran.

**I really have no excuse for why I took so long to update, I was just being lazy and didn't feel like writing. So I apologize for leaving you guys hanging for so long. Had I realized that I left off with a cliffhanger sooner I would've updated sooner. Blame my bad memory and laziness. :) Anyways, on a brighter note, since this story only has one more chapter left (Yes, you read that right!) I have a question for you guys. For the sequel, (Yes you read that right too!) I was wondering if you guys preferred I write all the chapters and then upload the story at once, or I upload chapters as I write them. Really it just depends on whether you want one big long wait for the story and then just have it all, or you want the wait to be broken up in between each chapter. I don't intend to leave this story of with a cliffhanger, but you never know ;). So just send me a review telling me whichever you prefer, and whichever seems to get the most interest will be the way I update. **


	14. Sixty Days and Counting

**This is it. *Takes deep breath* The final chapter! I actually like how this chapter turned out, compared to the other ones. It's not my favorite chapter but for an ending (Which I tend to not be very good at writing) it's pretty good. I hope you guys liked this story, even though it WAS awfully short and was a little cliché at times. Oh well :)**

* * *

Keep running.

His heart was racing. His feet pounding against the pavement as he ran through the empty streets of Gotham. His head hurt, his chest heavy, his throat dry from the deep panting. But he didn't dare stop.

He kept going.

Each step away from Slade was a weight lifted from his shoulders. His ears strained to hear the mans heavy footsteps in the distance, at least a hundred yards back.

He didn't look back to check.

Soon the pavement under his feet turned into gravel. His face showed confusion at discovering this. Only a handful of places in Gotham were gravel, and the only way he was going was towards-

The fairgrounds.

The circus was in town- not his circus- but a circus nonetheless. The performers were well done with their acts, and had retired to their trailers hours before to sleep.

"Sloppy, apprentice."

He was in the big top now, it's cheery red and white striped walls barely seen in the darkness of the room. High above was the trapeze- it's ropes swinging in the slight wind.

"Didn't I teach you anything about stealth?"

He was on the ground now, writhing in pain. His side hurt from where Slade had body slammed him into the gravel.

"You must stick to the shadows, Dick. Never reveal your whereabouts until it will be to your advantage."

That voice- so calm, so collected. It was frightening, worse than when the man had burst into a fit of rage, yelling and beating Dick to a pulp. But now- he certainly was mad, but not in the screaming way.

In the much more dangerous way.

He was standing again, still clutching his side which would surely grow a nasty purple stain in the morning. His eyes scanned the room, but it was too dark to see much farther in front of his face.

Behind him, a barely recognizable sound, the gravel moved slightly, creating a low rumble in the silence.

He whipped around quickly, only to have his body pushed to the ground once more. A foot was on his throat, pushing down on his windpipe and making it difficult to breath.

"Sloppy."

His hands were on the foot, pulling and pushing at it. But it wouldn't budge, it only pressed down harder.

"Where is the controller?" Slade leant down so that his masked face was only inches from Dick's.

A smirk made its way onto the boy's face. "I don't have it."

The foot pressed down even harder now, and his hands fell limply to his side in defeat.

"I'm not playing games here, Dick. Where is it?."

His vision was becoming fuzzy. His head was hurting more now, black specks dotting his vision.

"Don't... Have... It..."

The foot was gone, replaced by the man's gloved hands. His body was pushed up harshly against a pole, the cold metal digging into his back.

"Tell me!" He was yelling now, the rage evident in his voice.

"He doesn't have it, Deathstroke."

Dick was dropped to the ground in surprise, and Slade's head whipped around to stare at the Dark Knight.

"If he doesn't have it, then who does?"

Silence. The Dark Knight wasn't willing to tell where the controller was. Maybe he didn't even know himself.

Dick was picked up again, held from behind around the waist and neck. Something sharp- a switchblade- was being held to his throat.

"Tell me. Tell me or he dies." The blade was dangerously close to slicing his throat open.

Batman took a step towards them and the knife pressed down harder. "You wouldn't kill him. You need him."

Slade took a step back, dragging Dick with him. "I can always find another apprentice. If you truly value your son's life then I suggest you tell me where it is."

Silence filled the room again. Dick's masked eyes staring at his former mentor. He wouldn't tell that Robin had the controller. He would rather Slade kill him than the Titans.

"Right here Halloween face!" The young voice was coming from above, and suddenly a small figure clad in red dropped from the ceiling, tackling both Dick and Slade.

Moving quickly, Dick scrambled to his feet and reached for the knife that had fallen from Slade's hand. The man was now rising as well however, and reached out for Dick. Only to be hit from behind from Batman. The two began fighting once more, Batman having the early advantage.

"Hey!" Robin yelled to Dick, before handing him the controller. Dick stared at it for a moment in shock, not sure what to do with it.

"Destroy it, Dummy!" Robin suggested, pulling Dick from his blank thoughts.

With a sudden burst of rage Dick threw the device to the ground and stomped on it with his foot until all that was left were tiny pieces of metal and wire.

"It's over, Slade." He turned to the man, ripping the metal S from his chest and throwing it to the ground.

The man starred at him in shock for mere seconds, before narrowing his eye.

"No, it's not." At this he turned towards the opening on the side of the circus tent and ran out through the night, faster than anyone could catch him.

Batman and Robin began moving towards the door as well before Dick stopped them.

"Leave him, you won't catch him anyways. Let's just go home."

* * *

Alfred was waiting at the manor with three cups of hot chocolate, and after explaining to Jason who Dick was and after a brief talk between Bruce and Dick, he went to bed.

His old room was just as he had left it, the bed made neatly, the dresser still containing his civilian clothes and the poster of the Flying Grayson's hanging proudly on the wall.

After changing into some shorts and a t-shirt, Dick crawled into the bed, knowing that he would never get to sleep. He stare out the window for countless hours, when suddenly there was a figure standing on the ledge outside of it.

Dick moved quickly out of bed, standing near the door in a fighting stance. Ready to call for help if the man was here for a fight.

"I'm not here to take you away Dick, in fact I'm here to congratulate you on beating me. Granted, you needed the help of your former mentor and his new sidekick to do so. I decided to reward you for your accomplishment tonight. You get three months, sixty days to spend however you like. It can be spent here with your family or in jump as Robin. But just know that once the sixty days are up I'll come for you."

Dick had dropped his fighting stance now, staring at the man before him like he was some kind of alien replacement to the original Slade.

The man moved back towards the window now, and before disappearing once more he turned to the boy one last time.

"Farewell, apprentice."

* * *

**So, there you have it. The end to Ignoring The Truth. How was it? Be sure to send me a review telling me your opinion. :) **

**As for the sequel, I think I'm going to update every Sunday by 9:00pm Central time. I'm going to try really hard to get chapters out every Sunday (Not including tomorrow, in case you were wondering). Just know that sometimes life gets in the way and I can't always meet the deadlines. As for the actual story line I have the ending in mind so at least I know where I'm going this time around :) the sequel won't have much of the Titans, but there will be an occasional video chat or phone call here and there. Farewell for now! And don't forget to put me on author alert so you know when the sequel comes out! **

**-When Dreams Become Reality **


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